After 27 years of wearing Nike’s
NKE,
swoosh during golf tournaments, Tiger Woods will no longer be sponsored by the company.
“Over 27 years ago, I was fortunate to start a partnership with one of the most iconic brands in the world,” Woods said on X, formerly Twitter. “The days since have been filled with so many amazing moments and memories, if I started naming them, I could go on forever. Phil Knight’s passion and vision brought this Nike and Nike Golf partnership together and I want to personally thank him, along with the Nike employees and incredible athletes I have had the pleasure of working with along the way. People will ask if there is another chapter. Yes, there will certainly be another chapter. See you in LA!”
Nike confirmed Wood’s departure in an Instagram post on Monday.
“Tiger, you challenged your competition, stereotypes, conventions, the old school way of thinking. You challenged the entire institution of golf. You challenged us. And most of all, yourself. And for that challenge we’re grateful,” Nike said, along with a photo and the words, “It was a hell of a round, Tiger.”
Woods, 48, first signed with Nike in 1996, and signed multiple deals with the sportswear brand throughout his career. The total value of Wood’s Nike deals is reportedly between $500 to $660 million.
Woods was only wearing Nike apparel during tournaments, not using its clubs anymore as Nike stopped making golf equipment in 2016 and has only sold golf clothing since.
The 15-time major champion is one of just seven athletes with a net worth of over $1 billion, per Forbes. Those other athletes include Michael Jordan, Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, LeBron James, Roger Federer and Floyd Mayweather Jr.
Shares of Nike Inc. moved 0.15% during Monday afternoon’s trading and are down 18.11% over the last 12 months.
From the archives: When LeBron James chose Nike in 2003, he gave up $28 million — it could end up making him $1 billion
