Tiger Woods Reveals He Had to Develop a 'Rapport' With Daughter Sam, 16, Outside of His Athletic Career: 'Golf Took Daddy Away'

On Wednesday, May 1, Tiger Woods sat down with the Today show to discuss balancing parenthood with his longtime athletic career — particularly when it came to his eldest child.

The golf legend admitted his approach to forming a strong relationship with his and ex Elin Nordegren's daughter, Sam, 16, was very different to how he bonds with their son.

"You know, hey, when she was growing up, golf took daddy away from her," the 48-year-old explained. "I had to pack and I had to leave and I would be gone for weeks and there was a negative connotation to it."

"We’ve developed our own relationship, our own rapport, that’s outside of golf," he continued. "We do things that doesn’t involve golf."

However, Woods noted that with his youngest, Charlie, 15, "everything" they do is "golf-related" in some way. Woods has even been spotted proudly supporting his teenage son at the youngster's golf tournaments in recent years. "It's very different," he added.

In January 2022, a source spilled that Woods "thinks it would be great for Charlie to have a destiny like his," clarifying that "Tiger isn't trying to be pushy, he's just proud of his son and sees a lot of potential in him."

And while Sam is not a golfer herself, she happily supports father's athletic accomplishments — especially after the tragic car accident in 2021 that left him seriously injured and in need of major orthopedic surgeries.

As OK! previously reported, she gushed about her famous dad's fighting spirit while introducing him at the World Golf Hall of Fame induction ceremony in March 2022.

"We didn't know if you'd come home with two legs or not," she said of the near-fatal car crash. "Now, you're not only about to be inducted into the Hall of Fame, but you're standing here on your own two feet. This is why you deserve this."

"You're a fighter," she continued. "You've defied the odds every time."

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Several months prior, Woods himself opened up on the complicated feelings surrounding the accident and the extensive care that followed.

"It's hard to explain how difficult it has been just to be immobile for the three months, just lay there and I was just looking forward to getting outside," he said at the time. "I'm lucky to be alive and also have a limb."