Just one day after Tiger Woods won the Masters for the first time in 14 years, President Donald Trump announced that he will be giving the golfer the Presidential Medal of Freedom to commemorate his comeback in golf and in life.
Trump and Tiger have been friends for years and recently golfed together at the Trump National Golf Club in Jupiter, Florida.
Spoke to @TigerWoods to congratulate him on the great victory he had in yesterday’s @TheMasters, & to inform him that because of his incredible Success & Comeback in Sports (Golf) and, more importantly, LIFE, I will be presenting him with the PRESIDENTIAL MEDAL OF FREEDOM!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 15, 2019
The Presidential Medal of Freedom is the highest award a civilian can receive in the United States. According to the White House, it’s given to people who have “made exceptional contributions to the security or national interests of America, to world peace, or to cultural or other significant public or private endeavors.”
Other athletes who have earned the Presidential Medal of Freedom include Muhammad Ali, Babe Ruth, Roger Staubach, Michael Jordan, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Jackie Robinson, and Hank Aaron, among others.
The award was established in 1963 by President John F. Kennedy.
Tiger’s victory wasn’t just impressive on its own, but it was also one of the greatest professional comebacks in all of the pro sports considering he hadn’t won a Major in over 10 years.
