tom foreman upcoming special about the best and worth of 2009. i think he'll be good in it. jack, nice work. that does it for this edition of "360." thanks for watching. larry king starts right now. >> larry: tonight tiger woods before the controversy. >> i've learned how to in a sense manipulate things in life so i sna places that are private. >> larry: before the scandal. >> it's amazing how people like to take shots. >> larry: before his now troubled marriage. you like life as a single man. >> life is good right now. eventually when i'm ready. >> larry: tiger woods in his own words next on "larry king live."

thanks for joining us. our first talk to tiger woods back in 1998. he was fresh off of a historic victory at the masters, he's first of now 14 majors. looking back on this interview, a lot of things may strike you as interesting. his thoughts on marriage, on race, life in general. i was struck by how comfortable and self-assured he was. he was age 22. we started by talking about what else, golf, and an injury that was keeping him on the sidelines. the first obvious question would be how's the back? >> the back's fine. what happened was i was kind of doing a little cross training, running too many miles, and too early. i started -- i hadn't run for a while, and all of a sudden run four or five miles everywhere and hit a bunch of golf balls and puts strain on the back. i felt a twinge. i thought to do this as a

precautionary measure and make sure it's okay and ready to go. >> larry: it's strange, though, isn't it for someone so young to have a back problem? usually we say it's with aging. >> i must be getting old. i ran too many miles right away. i haven't done any roadwork like that. i haven't run in miles. it puts strange on it. >> larry: how did they treat it? >> ice and heat and a little stretching. it's perfect now. >> larry: do golfers work out a lot? >> they're starting to. they really are. they're starting to become athletes, and i think probably the next, i don't know, about 15 or 20 years is when you can see a majority of the players on the tour be athletes. that's when you really see something special. >> larry: you think it will get better then? >> no doubt about it. guys who are fit and watching what they eat, what they do.

do not get those big old beer bellies. >> larry: does that embarrass you a little because guys play with that? do you feel funny? >> i don't. it's a sport where you can get away with it. if you can get away with it, you have to do it. some guys are naturally big. not everyone can look like a physical specimen. >> larry: you will play the open next week? >> no doubt about it. >> larry: how do you choose what you play? i will play kemper and not buick. what's the determining factor? >> whether i've played there or not before, whether the golf course suits my game. a lot of different factors go into it. it has to do a lot with the majors and gearing up. i like to have my game peaking for these. >> larry: you play the week before a major? >> i usually take the week off. some like to play two or three weeks in a row into a major, and others like to golf in seclusion

and get ready that way. >> larry: do you ever wonder looking back how all this happened to you? i mean, you're obviously superb at the sport, but all this attention so young. do you ever think to yourself, where did this come from? >> i really do, because it's wild. when i go grocery shopping, run my cart up and down the the aisles and people recognize me. the wildest thing that ever happened was my friends and i were going to a -- where were we going? a clipper game. >> larry: a clipper game. >> we're driving along in the car at 25 miles per hour. it's a night and my window is down. we're driving along and people recognized me. that was wild. that was wild, yeah. >> larry: do you ever think that too much too soon? maybe i'm having too much of this? i know you're a very composed guy and obviously mature, but do you think to yourself this is maybe a lot for us? you're 22. you're just a kid. >> i think i would have said yes

last year, but now i've gotten used to it in a sense. last year right after i won the masters he was just berserk. i went on vacation down in mexico and couldn't have fun and left. then my first tournament back, which was the byron nelson, it was unbelievable. unbelievable. >> larry: do you lose all privacy? >> i've learned how to, i guess, get my privacy in different ways. >> larry: like? >> what i mean by that is when i go out in public, obviously i'm in public and can't have private time i like. i've learned how to manipulate things, manipulate my life so i can stay in places that are private and go to places with my friends in private so we can have fun that way. >> larry: for every plus there's a minus. you give up some part of your life, because guys your age like to hang around the shop and kid around and stand the on the corner and have laughs in the shopping center. you can't do that. >> first of all, i don't like to

shop. i hate shopping. >> reporter: you wear armani suits and great-looking ties? >> i send in the measurements and they can send it. hate shopping. let me tell you. >> larry: let's go real far back. we have those famous pictures we've seen of you as a child like wayne gretzky on skates. when did you start hitting the ball? >> i started when i was about 9 months. yeah, yeah. just hopped out of my walker, and i was swinging. >> larry: you are a natural golfer or are you putting me on? >> no. i watched my dad hit balls. we had an el nino year when i was born. >> larry: you were born where? >> here in southern cal. i think it was -- it would be obviously '76 when my dad was -- >> larry: this famous picture here. you're how old here? >> i'm 3 or 4. >> larry: you liked what you were doing? were you consciously aware i'm going to hit the ball? i'm going for a hole?

>> i absolutely loved it the. i loved hitting the golf ball and competing and i loved more than anything being with my dad doing these things and trying to beat him, because he was pretty good. >> larry: he has a new book out, right? >> he has a new book out, yeah. he's on tour today right now. >> larry: would you say for want of a better term a natural affinity for the game? >> yeah, i did. during this el nino my dad built as you saw in the screen a little indoor little net and mat, and that's how i watched. i watched my dad hit ball. it got so bad that my mom would want to take me out for a feeding and i would cry and kick, so what would she would do, my dad would be here and hit the golf ball and watch it go to the net and she would field me right back. that's how i learned the game. >> how did eldric become tiger? >> poet names were given to me when i was born. >> your middle name was tiger? >> my dad gave he me that.

>> larry: does she call you eldric? >> no, no. >> larry: who calls you that? >> only teachers that didn't know me, and i would say can i be called tiger. >> larry: why did they pick tiger? >> my dad had a vietnam nese counterpart in the green berets. his counterpart was named tiger. he save heed my dad's life on a number of occasions, and when vietnam fell they lost touch with one another. in honor of him i was given the name. >> larry: have they ever heard from him? >> we found out in the beginning of the year that he died at starvation in a concentration camp, yeah. >> larry: we'll be back with tiger woods. he'll with us for the full hour. i'm larry king. don't go away. >> yeah! ♪

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he's already a worldwide legend at 22. he's tiger woods. okay, you can hit the ball good when you were a kid and you knew you liked it. when did you say, i want to -- i think i want to do this for a living? >> you know, i never did. that's kind of strange to say that even. i never did. i just wanted to keep playing and competing. i loved to play in tournaments and i loved to compete in no matter what it is. >> larry: you went to stanford and majored in economics. >> yes. >> larry: did you have a goal other than golf? let's say that golf wasn't there. >> i'd have to do something in business within the golfing world. i love it. i have to be around golfers and that type of crowd. i love it. i love watching people hit balls. >> larry: explain that. why do you think that is? >> it's fascinating to me, because there's so many different ways.

there are different personalities. every personality is different for one another. golf is the same way. it's a microcosm of their personality. it's different. i like seeing all these different moves. they all hit the ball well. especially at the tour level. it's fun to kick back on the range as i'm walking and watch them hit balls. >> larry: you'd never give that off. you're a kind of solitary player in yourself. you have to be, right? >> you have to be. >> larry: you appreciate it. you watch any of the good ones? >> any player on tour, because they've done something well to get there. i like to know what it is and watch. maybe i can learn from it. >> larry: what was college golf like? >> college golf like? oh, my god. it was 36 holes, it was playing -- waking up at 5:00 in the morning and playing 36 holes and coming home in the evening tired and having to try and study. you don't study. wake up the next morning and play again and fly home and pull all-nighters trying to catch up. >> larry: why did you choose stanford, the harvard of the west? >> i had some choices.

i was lucky enough to go to a lot of different schools, but i figured, you know what? there's only one time where you can actually go to a great institution like stanford. you only get that chance once if a lifetime, and i'm going to take advantage of it. plus, too, the way i was raised. i was raised with my parents saying, you know what? you can't go practice until you have your homework done, so school always came first. school was always my priority before golf, and because of that, i say why change now? >> larry: you had a scholarship to stanford? >> yeah, i did. >> larry: you have to maintain your academic standing there or you're gone, right? >> exactly. >> larry: was it a school equal to it's reputation? >> it was really hard. i had a couple of friends -- one had a photographic memory. my roommate my freshman year was unbelievable. he never studied and got as and i was like how do you do that? he's obviously brilliant. it was neat to see all the different people there. you have people who are

brilliant in whatever they do. it's amazing. you have olympians there, you've got people that build their own computers from scratch. all different things. >> larry: were you a hit at school? we know about your popularity since then. were you a hit at stanford? >> i fit in. i was just one of the other people. >> larry: you blended. >> i blended in, no problem. >> larry: did you think early on about why there was so few of your color in the game? i mean, were you too young? >> i realized it later on in life. obviously, not too late. i'm not that old yet. when it first hit home that i was not accepted when i was probably about 5, 4 years old, 4 or 5 years old when a guy at a golf course i was playing at at 4 at the military base came over

to me and said -- he called me the "n" word anded we don't allow any of you out here. my dad was on the putting green and shoed me off and told my dad. my tad had a little altercation and i was banned from the golf course because of the color of my skin. >> larry: what did that do to you? >> it makes you understand people view other people in different ways. it's not because of their personality, but sometimes unfortunately it's because of the color of the skin. >> larry: prejudice is idiotic. when that happens directly like that, how do you emotionally deal with it? why should someone not let me play golf? because i'm a little darker than him? that's crazy. >> it's kind of funny, because i mean no offense but some people try to get dark and tan. >> larry: they buy coppertone all the time. >> exactly. here we already are. i think unfortunately it is part of our society, and it is there. but more than anything that inspired me.

>> larry: those blacks on the tour, they had overcome your predecessors, your jackie robinsons had overcome a lot. >> what they had to grin and bear and get through with maintaining dignity. if they didn't do that, they could have kicked them off. >> larry: the tournament you won, the famed masters, blacks couldn't play it not too long ago. >> 1975 was the first time. >> larry: was that part of that win, too? did you feel it sort of? >> when i was walking up 18 a number of emotions came through me. one of them was, you know what? thank you guys. i was thanking them as i was walking up, and i was looking down. there was a couple moments when i was thinking. >> larry: black golfers before you. charlie and lee and teddy rhodes and a number of others. >> larry: thanks. that's nice that you remember. >> it's because of them that i was there.

>> larry: were you -- what was the best part early that told you i could play this game? was there an aspect? was it your swing or was it something if i had seen you when you were 12 -- people say they saw gretzky at 10 and said he could skate and play. what did you have that i would have spotted at 12? >> you know, i think probably my swing. it tends to flow. it's hard. i swing pretty hard at it, but i've always done that my entire life. for a kid my age, the club just tended to flow in my hands. >> larry: is that genes? your father played? >> i've been lucky enough i was blessed with that, i guess. not against it. >> larry: our guest is tiger woods. we'll be back with more. don't go away.

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>> larry: tiger woods is the biggest money earner in golf. you lead for last year, and this year you've got $1,284,000. >> fourth on the list he. >> fi >> larry: first last year. >> larry: this money is incidental to what you make? the ewards away from the course? >> the rewards away from the course aren't too bad. so much is open in the world of endorsements. >> you know what? i like it. you know, unfortunately because of all that there is a price to pay, and obviously you have to

do days and appearances here and there. that adds up. >> larry: is it kind of weird to know that you can make a lot more not doing what you like to do? >> i look at it this way. it's a spinoff by doing what i love to do, i get rewards from that. that's through my endorsements. >> larry: how do you choose what you endorse? >> how do i choose? reputable companies that i feel comfortable with this. those are the biggest criteria. if i don't feel comfortable, i don't want to work with them. he i don't want to be associated with them, and i won't be happy. >> larry: you get a lot of offers? >> we have a number of them. it's interesting. >> larry: do you ever fear too much? i'm doing too much? >> i did initially. we did a few and that's why we took it slow. i've taken it very slow. right now we have a moratorium

that enough is enough and we're going to concentrate on what we have right now. my plate's pretty full. >> larry: you don't have a club with your name on it, do you? >> no, i don't. >> larry: that's the strangest part of all. why not tiger woods clubs? >> i don't know. i think there's something that we might have to go to titleist. >> larry: have golf clubs improved? >> oh, my god, have they ever. it's unbelievable. they may have improved and gotten lighter, they've gotten -- technology has caught up, harder materials, balls are better, but i still play the old blades. the short shafts, too. >> larry: that never changed, right? >> no. >> larry: hogan played that, right? >> basically almost the same specs. >> larry: we'll be back with tiger woods. he's our guest for the whole hour. ge capital understands what small businesses need

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>> larry: he's won nine tournaments since turning pro. here's a he record. he finished 1997 with five victories, a record for the pga tour, over $2 million. he was the associated press male athlete the year. the 1996 sports illustrated sportsman of the year. had a great amateur career. won six national championships. his endorsement deals have made major news. for nike and titleist and rolex and wheaties and american express. his father was a green beret. he has a new book out. you rarely see criticism except for the john finestein book. how have you reacted to that

where he has made it since you have too much too quick and are now above it? >> i don't know, because he doesn't know me. >> larry: you never met him? >> i know him now, but i wouldn't call him a good friend or anything. i know him through an acquaintance. it's very interesting. this is a guy who observes from the outside, never has a chance to get to know me, and takes shots at me. kind of interesting. >> larry: he never sat down and did an interview with you? >> he did an article from "newsweek" from his home or somewhere on the east coast. i don't know where it is. >> larry: it was on the east coast. >> did his article from there, and never actually went to milwaukee when i turned pro to write the article. >> larry: he wrote it elevated you to fame that people that knew nothing about golf stopped to watch tiger. he blew off the president of the united states and rachel robinson, the widow of the most important athlete and made no apologies. he didn't have to. he was tiger. no reaction other than that's

interesting? >> it's just very interesting. very interesting, too, because one is the president asked me to come to mr. robinson's ceremony up in new york. it was the day i won the masters, and he said it was so important i should be there. i was just wondering if it was so important why didn't he ask me before instead of jumping on the bandwagon right when i won. that really bothered me. >> larry: did he call you personally? >> he did. i've always honored jackie robinson and know all about him, and i figured, you know what? i would rather -- i'm more of a private person and would celebrate his occasion within my heart. that was it. >> larry: how does a 22-year-old say no to the president of the united states? >> that's just me. it's not that i'm saying no to the president of the united states. i'm saying no to the way he approached it. >> larry: did you tell him the reason? did you say why didn't you call

saturday? >> i just did a press conference, and i was walking out signing a bunch of autographs and here he was on the phone. >> larry: did you know you'd take some shots for that? >> i take shots for everything i do. >> larry: other than interesting, there has to be some emotional conflict to read yourself knocked at this age. >> oh, god. i've been knocked for a lot of different reasons all my life, and i guess this is no exception. but, you know, i know what i did, and i'm going to stick with it. i honor mr. robinson in my heart. i always will. >> larry: we'll be back with more of tiger woods. we'll be including your phone calls. don't go away. >> that's nice. >> oh, yeah.

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>> larry: welcome bark. we're replaying my interview with tiger woods in 1998. certainly there were better times for tiger. he's always been a target for criticism. government writer john finestein wasn't the first, and certainly won't be the last. one other thing in the book that bothered me and i wonder how you raektded to it, when he talks about your interest in commercials and you turn out to be a 22-year-old who stamps his foot when he doesn't get his way, stalks angrily off the golf

course if he shoots 74. how do you react to that? >> you'd be mad if you shot 74, too. maybe not. >> larry: that's right. i got real mad. >> it's amazing how people like to take shots when they don't know you. >> larry: that still surprises you, right? >> yeah. it's fine, go ahead and take shots at me. if you know me, what i believe in, my principles, and if you disagree with that, that's fine. if you don't know him, i think you really have the right to do that. >> larry: when you go to a golf course for a first time, and a lot of these are for the first time for you. you're just an amateur. do you get there early and walk the course? what's the pretournament tiger? >> i play a practice run on tuesday. there's a game on wednesday i play. i get two solid looks at it and i'm ready to go on thursday. >> larry: are you one of those athletes always confident? i'm going to do well. you can never say i'm going to

win every tournament, that's impossible. do you say to yourself on thursday, i'm going to do well? >> i go there with the intention of winning. that's my ultimate goal. sometimes i feel more comfortable than other times, no doubt about that. my tee up on that first tee, i feel i have as good a chance as anybody else. >> larry: would you say as a player you are, as palmer was, a risk take her? i'll try this shot on the 17th the closing day. i'm 3 behind, i'm going to go? >> if you want to win you got to go. >> larry: not all golfers want to win, by the way. some golfers are very happy to make the cut and take the check. >> that's not the way i am. i've always been a person that does anything to win. if that means like at pebble beach last year, i was at the time one shot back or even -- yeah, one shot back. i went for an 18 from 276 into the wind, and knocked it on the green. sometimes i pull it off and other times i don't, but if you want to win, you got to go.

>> larry: when you don't play on those occasions, and there's not many, do you learn from that? >> oh, yeah. no doubt about that. you should learn something from each and every round you play. >> larry: you learn more when you lose than when you win? >> depends how you lose. if you play well and lose, then i think sometimes you learn less. but if you obviously have a debacle and really throw up all over yourself and lose that way, then obviously you learn an awful lot about yourself. >> jackie gleason says it's a great humbler. if you're feeling that own the world, go shoot a game of golf. what's the fascination of that stick and a little ball and a cup? >> i think a variety of different things. conditions are always changing and sceneries are always changing and, one, you can never master the game. simple as that. >> larry: there's no perfect round? >> none. huh-uh. none. you can hit the ball.

it's one of the only games where you can play your absolute best and still not shoot as good a score as when you play it horrible. >> larry: let's take some calls for the great tiger woods. hello. >> caller: hello mr. king and mr. woods. >> hi. >> caller: it's a privilege to talk to you, tiger. my teacher and i discuss golf, and we were wondering what's it like to be a role model, and do you find it to be quite a burden? >> that's a great question. do i find it to be a burden? >> larry: you are a role model. >> i think it's awesome. i really do. it's not too often you get a chance to influence a lot of people in a good way. if you had that opportunity, i think you should take it. anyone who is living should be a role model in some way, shape and form. if i'm in a position where i can influence more than one person, i'll take advantage of that. >> larry: you think you owe the public more than just playing good golf? you owe them a stable life?

>> i don't owe them. i want to give back to them. there's a big difference. owing somebody says they've given a lot to me. >> larry: do you feel you're an influence on young blacks? >> young children. >> larry: don't you think you've attracted a lot more blacks to the game? >> i think i've attracted minorities to the game, but i think, you know what? why limit it to just that? i think you should be able to influence people in general, don't limit it to just one race or socioeconomic background. it should be everybody. everybody should be in the fold. >> larry: one of golf's problems is this is not an inexpensive sport. as you influence these people, from wherever they come from, if they come from a ghetto area or a poor area, any kind, white, black, hispanic, they can't play. what do we do about that? >> that's why i started my foundation, the tiger woods foundation. we had a big concert here, the tiger jam. >> larry: monday night took in a lot of money. >> all that money goes to junior

golf. also educational programs across the country. we're going to try -- right now we're part of the first tee program, which is the pga tour and a couple other organizations are with. we're going to try to build low-cost facilities like a driving range and maybe a couple holes in which kids can go out and play, enjoy the game, for very little money as well as get instruction, too. >> larry: that's a great idea. >> it's an awesome idea. i love it. >> larry: tiger woods is the guest. we'll be back with more calls. don't go way. so many arthritis pain relievers -- i just want fewer pills and relief that lasts all day. take 2 extra strength tylenol every 4 to 6 hours?!?

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>> larry: we're back with tiger woods. great neck, new york. hello. >> caller: how you doing tonight? >> doing great. >> caller: i have a two-part question. my son is 7 years old and loves golf, but the problem is most of the public courses won't let them on unless they're 12 years old. i know you started real young, and you were able to -- it seems like you were able to play on most of the golf courses, right? what would you recommend for my son? >> larry: 7 years old and can't

play on the golf course. play on the government course. practice? >> caller: we play at the range. that's what we're able to do. >> that's the way i grew up. i grew up that way. i grew up on the range hitting balls and on the putting green. i rarely ever got a chance to play golf. >> larry: is that a wise thing, to keep youngsters off? >> you know, on public golf courses i would -- it's really tough. if a kid can keep up and he can hit the ball okay, then i don't see anything wrong with him going out there. if he's just learning the game and first thing he wants to do is go out and play, then i have a problem with that. >> larry: do you play against you, or do you play against myers or funk? are you playing against -- >> you always play against yourself. you try to beat yourself and the golf course. there are two opponents in the game, yourself and the golf course. if you can somehow combat those two, you'll do all right. >> larry: the age old question,

there have been some great -- ken haroldson was a great baseball player and terrific golfer and he won all the baseball golf tournaments. he plays doral great and decides on the pro tour, and gets wiped out. what happened? it's still the same club, the same ball. what happened? >> sometimes there's a mental block up there. if you can't get over the fact of where you are now and still relax and go ahead and let it flow from you, then sometimes you're going to have some problems. >> larry: so in other words, it's easy when the competition is just a baseball player playing golf, but it affects you if it's nicklaus? >> exactly. sometimes people get caught up in who they're playing rather than going out there and playing the golf course. >> larry: what's it feel like to play with legends? >> it's a great feeling. i'll tell you a great story. i think it was my last masters as an amateur, so i was 18. i played -- i was 20.

i played with arnold palmer and jack nicklaus on wednesday of the masters. played all day, and then was fortunate enough to go out there in the par 3 contest and continuing playing with them for another nine more holes. i got to play 27 holes with two of the greatest players to ever play the game. >> larry: what did you talk about? >> we talked about a number of different things. i kept asking them questions. i was so excited. we were playing skins and giving each other the needle at times, too. >> larry: who won? >> jack did. he birdied the last hole and took all the skins from us as always. >> larry: hi. >> caller: hi larry and tiger. a huge fan of both of yours. my question is for tiger. with your recent success how have you been treated by the other players on the tour? >> larry: good question. how are you treated? do you get all the attention? >> at first it was a little jealousy. there's no doubt about that, because i was getting a lot of hype. some of my endorsement deals were reported in the public, and

people read them and know about them. yeah, there was a little jealousy because i hadn't proven myself out there. i hadn't hit a shot yet and got what i got. yeah. plus, they didn't know me as a person. they see this little kid come out there and playing, but i proved to them i could play the game. i won my fifth or sixth start, i won in vegas and two weeks later at disney. i won two times on the tour championship. i proved to them i could play out there with them. >> larry: what was your first tournament as a pro? >> milwaukee. >> larry: first shot, first tee, first day. what was that like? >> i hit it 315 yards right down the middle. >> larry: were you nervous? >> i couldn't breathe. i made a birdie, too. >> larry: golfers always remember shots like that. have you gone past the fuzzy zeller thing? were you shocked at that when he

made a joke and it came out wrong? >> i was shocked the fact that he said that. i can understand he said it casually, but the fact he walked away and then turned back and said it, i don't know -- >> larry: the watermelon -- >> fried chicken and stuff like that. >> larry: did you forgive him? >> yeah, i forgive, but i don't forget. >> larry: fuzzy's popular on the tour. he's known as a funny guy. >> he's a funny guy. sometimes you cross the line with funniness. it can pop up and bite you. >> larry: you played with him. you were paired with him? >> yeah, at the masters this year. i was paired with him on saturday. >> larry: what was that like? >> we went out and played. >> larry: do you talk to fellow golfers when you play? >> sometimes. i don't talk very much. i'm very into my own world concentrating, focusing, and trying to take care of business. >> larry: you're also very -- you emphasize what you do. you're happy to hit a good shot. you just don't walk calmly into the good day.

>> no doubt about it. for me, because of the way i am, i don't know how you cannot show emotion when you hit a good shot or make a great putt or do something out of the ordinary and spectacular. how can you not hear good about yourself? >> how about the reverse when you hit a bad shot? >> you can't have one without the other. unfortunately i show a little emotion that way, too. >> larry: ever break a club? >> i've never broken a club, no. >> larry: what's the most frustrating you felt on a golf course? you ever not finish a round? >> you know, out of anger? no, never done that. i play all the wall through. you start it and have to finish. there are times you think i could be in other places right now. >> larry: do you ever have one of those eight-shot bogies where you hit the water, you hit the rock, you hit sand dune? >> i've had a number of those. unfortunately some are in tournaments. >> larry: we'll be right back with tiger woods on "larry king live." (announcer) if you want directions to the stadium, push here.

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>> larry: someone called about a story nare going to restructure three of the holes at the

masters because of the way you dominated it. how do you react to that? >> i don't think it's just because of me. it's because players are getting longer, and since we're getting longer and stronger, more fit. technology is helping out with that, too, agronomy. they change it every year, too. >> larry: you don't disagree with this or regard it as a personal thing? >> they change things every year. they cree teak it every year. >> larry: orange county, california. hello. >> hello, larry. and tiger. thanks for taking the call. sorry about that. i want to share a quick, short story with you and i follow it up with a question. we were at the l.a. open over a year ago in '97. my grandmother -- my mother-in-law faxed a letter to tiger about my son, my son had

just had brain surgery and what he had been going through and that he was a fan of golf and a fan of tiger's. we were at the tournament that day, which was on a saturday. we got home that night, and i want to tell you what kind of individual this man is and what kind of heart he has. we were sitting at the dinner table eating dinner. tiger woods called our house to see how my son was doing. after he had brain surgery. during a tournament at the l.a. open, which is one of the biggest ones there is. so tiger, i want to thank you again for that. i still share that story to this day, and it's really nice. my question is, if or when you have children, will you encourage them to play sports and specifically golf? >> yeah, i would. i would encourage them to play sports, but i think more than anything is you have to understand as -- i think as a bornste job of a parent you should provide your kid with an

opportunity to do whatever they want to do. play sports, go into academics, go into music. >> larry: your kids will have enormous breaks that most kids don't have? >> you never know. maybe not. they may have to work harder. >> larry: they're certainly not going to -- you probably think about these things already. their finances are going to be okay? >> they're financing are going to be good, but they own that money. that's what my dad taught me. i'd say we're doing fine. my dad said what's this we stuff? >> larry: do you want to get married and have a family? >> no. it will happen. >> larry: you don't want to? >> i'll surrender one day. >> larry: you like life as a single man pretty much. >> life is good right now. eventually when i'm ready. right now i'm busy. >> larry: is it hard to date a lot when you're gone a lot? >> it's very difficult to get to know somebody.

for me, i think i'll find somebody through a friend of a friend. >> larry: tiger, you have to meet this girl. >> something like that. right now it's too busy. i'm traveling all over the place, and it's hard to meet people. >> larry: we'll be back with our remaining moments with tiger woods right after this. at the first sign of a cold... ( sneezing ) i didn't take zicam cold remedy... but i did. zicam reduces the duration of a cold. ( sneezing ) no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no... can you do it by 3:00 ? yes, i can. how about 2:00 ? hmm...

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life is always full of goals. what's yours? >> mine? ultimately? to be the best. >> larry: you want to be known as the best who ever played this game? >> just to be the game. the best i can be, whatever it is. i want to be the best. >> larry: the best you can be. are you going to join the army? >> my dad was there. it's good enough for me. >> larry: do you have a particular tournament that you say, that's one i want to win? >> all four majors. that would be pretty nice. i'd like to get the grand slam one day, but as of right now, you know, i don't see it changing. every tournament i tee it up, and that's my priority right now, that moment. >> larry: why is it so hard if you really are in a groove and everything is going well to win

back-to-back tournaments? >> why is it so hard? >> larry: yeah. goalies win back-to-back games, michael jordan your favorite. they win eight games in a row. why is it hard to win two tournaments in a row? >> the number of different factors that go into it. for us back-to-back wins happen two weeks apart. that's a whole week and a lot of different things and four days couple latively add up to a winner versus one day, one night. >> larry: is it hard to keep the groove? >> it's unbelievably hard to keep the groove, because every day sometimes you wake up a little different. >> larry: do you play every day sf. >> no. i take time off. i have to rest. >> larry: would you take a week off? two weeks? >> i take a couple weeks off here and there. i take a couple weeks off, but at home i'm playing almost every day. >> larry: you're coming back from the back thing and play in

the open next week. did you play this week? >> i'm in vegas with my trainer and pro, and we've been working hard for you. >> larry: what does a pro do for you? >> he's my instructor. butch knows my golf swing and knows what it takes. also it helps to have a second pair of eyes, because you feel and do are two different things. that's usually totally different. >> larry: they see something you don't see? >> yeah. he has so much more infinite knowledge about the game than i do. he can teach me, but no matter what he teaches me i have to go out there. >> do you watch tapes of yourself? >> sometimes. >> larry: it's not always a great help? >> sometimes. if you know what to look for. sometimes i'm struggling with, let's say, my putting, and i want to go look at times where i putted well and look at all the different vergsions. >> larry: tiger, you're an ace.