“Brady has NO business above him”; “Ludicrous” – Fans unhappy as ESPN ranks Tiger Woods eighth on 21st century’s top 100 athletes’ list

Tiger Woods during the Open Championship 2024 (Image via getty)

Tiger Woods during the Open Championship 2024 (Image via getty)
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Recently, ESPN released a list of the 100 greatest athletes of the 21st century, and Tiger Woods placed eighth. However, many fans believe he should have ranked much higher.

Woods, arguably the greatest golfer in the history of the sport, has claimed 82 wins on the PGA Tour, including 15 major championships. Further, he was the World No. 1 golfer for an astounding 683 weeks, including a record 283 consecutive weeks.

As per ESPN’s list, Woods was ranked behind Michael Phelps, Serena Williams, Lionel Messi, LeBron James, Tom Brady, Roger Federer, and Simone Biles as the greatest athletes of this century.

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Golf fans online expressed their disagreement with ESPN’s list and felt Tiger Woods deserved to be ranked higher than the likes of Brady. Many felt Tiger’s accomplishments were not just about the stats, as he had also helped elevate golf’s popularity as a commercial product. Here’s a look at some of the reactions:

“Brady has NO business above him. Good lord that’s a joke , biles too,” one fan wrote.
“Ludicrous,” another fan wrote.
“It’s completely irrational. Tiger is definitely #1 or #2 on that list and it is a mystery why some of them are even on that list,” another fan remarked.
“I can see the argument for Phelps ahead of Tiger due to Medals, but no one on that list else changed their sport’s interest more than Tiger, or improved the quality of the field in the decades after,” this fan commented.
“ESPN putting Simone Biles ahead of him tells you everything you need to know about the legitimacy of the article lol,” one fan opined.
“Tiger never left for a better team, never had deflategate scandals, fought racism and segregation in a predominately white sport and won at a high clip. He had Kobe/brady mentality, with Lebrons athleticism and Messi’s natural talent,” one fan wrote.
How many majors did Tiger Woods win in the 21st century?
Sixty-seven of Tiger Woods’ 82 PGA Tour wins came in the 21st century. Additionally, all 13 of his major championships were won after 2000. He also held all four major championships during 2000-01, a feat popularly known as the ‘Tiger Slam.’

Post-2000, Tiger Woods won four Masters Tournament titles, three PGA Championships, two US Opens, and three Open Championships. Here’s a look at his major wins in the 21st century:

2000

The Open Championship
PGA Championship
2001

Masters Tournament
2002

Masters Tournament
US Open
2005

Masters Tournament
The Open Championship
2006

The Open Championship
PGA Championship
2007

PGA Championship
2008

US Open
2019

Masters Tournament
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Edited by Shobhit Kukreti