Golf Inspiration Quotes

My whole life, I grew up watching Tiger Woods. If I tuned in to a golf tournament, that's who I watched.

'Golf Digest' had all the old school swings, and my favorite swing, ever, was Nick Faldo's swing. And it had all the greats, Ernie Els and Nick Faldo and all that stuff, and I had the pictures of their swing sequences on my wall.

It's the Tiger Woods effect. What he was able to accomplish at such a young age - he drew me to the game, and I can only speak for myself, but a lot of the players that are my age saw Tiger in his prime when we were all teenagers. We all wanted to be like him.

As a modern-day role model, I'd have to go for Tiger Woods. I'm also a massive Sachin Tendulkar fan.

There's one guy who inspired a nation of golfers, and that's Greg Norman. He's been incredible to me and all the great golfers.

My wife gave me a book before we got married, Oh, the Places You'll Go!, by Dr. Seuss. She was trying to tell me something, about what I was capable of, but I didn't get it. Over time, I've sort of lived the message in that book, and I couldn't have without what golf taught me. So I put it in my bag while I played the Old Course, and on the last hole when I posed on the Swilcan Bridge, I held it up.

As a kid growing up in Latrobe, PA, I could dream about being an Olympian like Jesse Owens or Johnny Weissmuller. I could also dream about being a great golfer like Bobby Jones or Byron Nelson. But the idea of being an Olympic golfer never occurred to me.

Much of the fire with him [Ben Hogan] was lit by Byron Nelson, who came from the same town - the same caddie yard - and achieved fame and fortune several years ahead of Ben and who, as a kid, had always been popular and better liked than Ben. No puzzle at all.

The game is getting younger and the game is getting better. It has to do with Tiger and Phil, largely, inspiring everybody and brought a lot more youth into the game of golf.

When I was in high school, there's no doubt I was trying to swing like Tiger Woods when he first came on tour.

The greatest thing for me is when someone comes up and says, 'My son started playing golf because of you,' or, 'I started playing golf because of you,' and all that.

I've drawn a lot of inspiration from people who have supported me, golfers who have helped me. If it wasn't for the game of golf I'd probably be mowing the greens back in Latrobe.

Seve Ballesteros was the best trouble-shot player who ever lived. It didn't matter how far in the woods you put that guy, he'd find a way to get out. But Seve inadvertently put a lot of big numbers on the scorecards of average players, because he inspired them to take dumb chances.

To Sally, who showed me the benefits of the sport of golf.

The very first tournament I watched is the U.S. Open when I was 13. And that was the year Juli Inkster won.

I've always said it: I don't want to be the only Columbian playing on the PGA Tour, so, guys, just play some good golf and come join me here.

I was from the bush, watching Greg Norman on TV, but it was a world away.