Tiger Woods announced that his mother, Kultida, died on Tuesday morning.
No cause of death was immediately available.
“My Mom was a force of nature all her own, her spirit was simply undeniable,” Woods said in a statement on social media. “She was quick with the needle and a laugh. She was my biggest fan, greatest supporter, without her none of my personal achievements would have been possible.”
It is with heartfelt sadness that I want to share that my dear mother, Kultida Woods, passed away early this morning. My Mom was a force of nature all her own, her spirit was simply undeniable. She was quick with the needle and a laugh. She was my biggest fan, greatest supporter,… pic.twitter.com/RoKd0fsM9J
— Tiger Woods (@TigerWoods) February 4, 2025
Last week, Kultida Woods had attended Tiger’s TGL match in South Florida and was shown on the telecast. She had moved to the area after Tiger relocated from Orlando.
Though Tiger’s father, Earl, was well-known in golf circles, Tiger said that it was his Thai-born mother who was the driving force in his career and “the enforcer.” Tida and Earl Woods were married 37 years until his death, at age 74, in 2006.
During his acceptance speech for the 2024 Bob Jones Award, the USGA’s highest honor, Woods saved some of his most heartfelt comments for his mother.
“My mom doesn’t get enough credit,” he said. “Everyone thought it was my dad when I went on the road, which it was, but Mom was at home. If you don’t know, Mom has been there my entire life. She’s always been there through thick and thin.”
Woods said that it was his mother who shuttled him to all of his junior tournaments, who had instilled his trademark toughness and ruthlessness, who gave him the idea of using red as his “power color”, and who was a fixture, standing barely 5 feet tall and in her wide-brim hat behind the ropes, throughout his pro career. A witness to so many legendary moments, Tida was waiting behind the 18th green, with grandchildren Sam and Charlie, when Tiger authored one of the most remarkable comeback stories of his career at the 2019 Masters. Just as she was there for his game-changing victory at Augusta in 1997.
“She has allowed me to get here,” Woods said during the speech last year. “She allowed me to do these things, chase my dreams, and the support and love – I didn’t do this alone. I had the greatest rock that any child could possibly have: my mom. Thank you, Mommy.”
Woods, 49, is the tournament host of next week’s Genesis Invitational, which has been relocated from Riviera Country Club to Torrey Pines in San Diego. It is not yet known whether he will compete.
“Thank you all for your support, prayers and privacy at this difficult time for me and my family,” Woods said.