Tiger Woods isn’t teeing up at the Tour stop in New Orleans, but he’s having a busy off week, and it could have a tremendous impact on the game in an unlikely place.
Woods gave a junior clinic on Tuesday at his home course, Medalist GC, in Jupiter, Fla., and one of the attendees came all the way from Nepal: 18-year-old Pratima Sherpa.
ESPN chronicled the day, and Sherpa is quite a story. She has lived her entire life in a maintenance shed off the third hole at a golf club in Nepal, as her parents work on the course’s grounds crew. Through that humble upbringing, Sherpa has grown up around the game and is hoping to become Nepal’s first professional female golfer.
“Pratima is simply incredible,” Woods wrote in an email to ESPN. “I read her story and I was amazed. The chance to meet her and talk to her was really inspiring. It was great to witness her journey and to see the happiness she exudes.”
Woods also Tweeted a note about Pratima.
Inspiring day working with my @TGRFound team and meeting Pratima Sherpa, an amazing young woman from Nepal. We can all learn from her perseverance, hard work and determination. pic.twitter.com/rV5KAtKzzl
— Tiger Woods (@TigerWoods) April 24, 2018
Woods learned about Sherpa about a year ago, and through both ESPN and his foundation arranged for her to attend his clinic. He gave Sherpa a private, 30-minute lesson at the back of the driving range – she used Woods’s clubs and hit barefooted — before joining the rest of the group for the full clinic.
“This was the best day of my life,” Sherpa said. “I was so happy to meet Tiger.”
