Tiger Woods Joins Michael Jordan, LeBron James As Athlete ... - ESPN

• Tom VanHaarenJun 10, 2022, 10:27 AM ETClose
  • ESPN staff writer
  • Joined ESPN in 2011
  • Graduated from Central Michigan
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Tiger Woods is already in rare air for his accomplishments on the golf course, and he has reached another impressive feat. Forbes is now estimating that Woods' net worth is at least $1 billion, which would make him one of only three athlete billionaires in the world.

Woods joins Michael Jordan and LeBron James as the other two athletes; James was estimated to be worth over $1 billion just last week.

Forbes noted that James earned $121.1 million gross over the past 12 months while still an active NBA player and that Jordan didn't make the list until 2014, years after he had retired.

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Forbes reported that less than 10% of Woods' net worth comes from earnings on the golf course. His sponsorship and endorsement deals through Nike, TaylorMade, Gatorade and Monster Energy, which is featured prominently on his golf bag, have all largely contributed.

Woods, similar to James, doesn't consider himself as just an athlete and has gotten into ownership as well as course design. TGR Design, TGR Live (an event company) and TGR Ventures are all part of Woods' portfolio.

He recently invested in a new category of golf with a stake in PopStroke, a luxury minigolf organization that has multiple locations in Florida.

Woods has seen his net worth continue to grow despite a series of events in 2009 -- including a Thanksgiving car crash -- that resulted in multiple sponsors dropping him, including Buick. Even while recovering from another car crash over the past 12 months, Woods has made $68 million in off-course income, Forbes said.

Although he has played in only The Masters and PGA Championship over the past few months and did not participate in any tournaments during the 2021 calendar year, that figure alone would make him the 14th-highest-paid athlete in the world.