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01/14 22:00 CST Tiger Woods celebrates 30th year of foundation and gets $20M
grant from Arthur Blank
Tiger Woods celebrates 30th year of foundation and gets $20M grant from Arthur
Blank
PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) --- Tiger Woods celebrated the 30th year of his TGR
Foundation by saying it raised $50 million last year toward its education
initiatives. The party ended with Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank pledging a
$20 million grant for a new learning lab in Atlanta.
The 30th anniversary bash Wednesday night at The Breakers came two weeks after
Woods turned 50, and the intimate gathering of A-listers included a performance
by Jon Bon Jovi. The night even had a title --- "RED: Celebrating Legacy" ---
and a presenting sponsor in Ernst & Young, which now goes by "EY"
Sun Day Red is the apparel company Woods launched two years ago. His late
mother, Kultida, told him red was his power color and Woods wore a red shirt on
Sunday in winning 82 times on the PGA Tour, including 15 majors.
But the surprise was the $20 million grant from the Arthur M. Blank Family
Foundation, for a TGR Learning Lab in Atlanta.
Blank is on the PGA Tour board and owns the Atlanta Drive team that is part of
the high-tech indoor league TGL that Woods helped launch.
"I have immense respect and admiration for Tiger, not only for his legendary
career, but for the way he continues to lead with purpose off the course,"
Blank said in a statement. "It's truly an honor to partner with someone who
believes so deeply in the power of education and community.
"Seeing the impact of TGR Foundation, from the Learning Labs to the hundreds of
thousands of students empowered through its programs, is incredibly inspiring
and I look forward to seeing the impact the TGR Learning Lab Atlanta makes on
our community."
Woods started the Tiger Woods Foundation when he turned pro in 1996 (it became
the TGR Foundation a decade ago when he rebranded his work off the golf
course). He began by doing clinics around the country and five years later came
up with the idea of a learning center.
The first one was in Anaheim, California, near his hometown. Atlanta would be
the fifth learning lab, the others opened or planned in Philadelphia, Los
Angeles and Augusta, Georgia, which is part of Augusta National's make over of
the municipal course known as "The Patch."
The foundation's mission is to support students from underserved communities to
pursue their goals through education. The TGR Foundation says it has reached
more than 3 million kids and served over 217,000 students since 2006.
"Tonight was a reminder that the legacy I'm most proud of isn't on the golf
course; it's the work we've done to positively impact the lives of students
through TGR Foundation," Woods said in a release announcing the donations. "I
am excited for what's next as we expand alongside our great supporters to reach
more young people from communities in need."
On the golf course, Woods attended the TGL match of his Jupiter Links team on
Tuesday night. He did not indicate when or where he would be able to return to
competition. He last played 36-hole PNC Championship with son Charlie in
December 2024.
Woods ruptured his Achilles' tendon in March and then had a seventh back
surgery in September.
He also has devoted time to PGA Tour policy, serving on the boards of the tour
and PGA Tour Enterprises, and chairing the Futures Competition Committee that
is reshaping the schedule.
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