Source: Tracy Wilcox / Getty
After more than a quarter century, the business relationship between Tiger Woods and Nike seems to be coming to an end.
According to Front Office Sports, Nike seems to be ready to move on from Tiger Woods as the man’s career on the golf course is winding down, and his retirement seems inevitable. Having signed to Nike back in 1996 when he was only 20 years old (God, time flies), the Swoosh brand has put hundreds of millions of dollars in the iconic golfer’s bank account over the decades, but it seems like that lucrative relationship is about to wrap up sooner than later.
Per Front Office Sports:
On Monday, the “No Laying Up” golf podcast – which in the past has provided early insight into major shake-ups in pro golf, such as defections from the PGA Tour to LIV Golf – reported that next week’s PNC Championship could be Woods’s last tournament wearing the Swoosh.
NLU also reported similar rumblings about other Nike golf athletes — a roster that includes Rory McIlroy, Brooks Koepka, and Scottie Scheffler — based on the idea that an existing golf equipment manufacturer is potentially creating an apparel brand. Since Nike stopped manufacturing clubs in 2016, Wood has used clubs from TaylorMade, which sells some golf apparel but doesn’t have as vast a collection as Nike.
Since returning from ankle surgery in 2022, Woods has notably played golf tournaments wearing FootJoy shoes.
We’re not gonna lie, this isn’t devastating anyone on our side of things. We can’t remember the last time we were hype for the latest Tiger Woods Nike collection to drop, but then again, we don’t be out on the golf course like that… or ever.
Who Nike has in mind to carry on their golf apparel is anyone’s guess, but best believe we won’t be turning up whenever a new face of their golfing franchise is announced. Maybe if they brought back Adam Sandler’s Happy Gilmore character we’d be slightly interested to see what they have coming down the pike. Just sayin’.
What do y’all think of Nike and Tiger Woods ending their partnership? Let us know in the comments section below.
