Being the child of a big-time movie star is probably a very nice thing indeed. There are no end of benefits that come with it, though at the same time it can be stressful as well. This includes the children of sports stars.
By a young age, Charlie Woods, son of legendary golfer Tiger Woods turned out to be a great golfer, just like his father. He’s experienced some drama while growing up, including his parent’s high-profile, public divorce, but these days he’s a teenager who loves playing golf.
Elin Nordegren & Tiger Woods
Swedish professional golfer Jesper Parnevik, who lived in the US, had hired Nordegren as a nanny for his children. It was Parnevik who introduced Woods and Nordegren to each other during the Open Championship in 2001.
The year before, Woods had insisted on meeting Nordegren, but she was dating another man at the time. As a result, it was far from set in stone that Woods would get the chance to even meet her. According to Parnevik’s wife, Mia Parnevik, many golf pros were interested in their beautiful blonde nanny.
For her part, Nordegren, who dreamed of becoming a child psychologist, initially had no interest in dating Woods.
“Tiger was OK with that,” Mia Parnevik said. “There was a big line of single golfers wanting to meet her. They were gaga over her.”
But somehow their paths crossed and Woods and Nordegren eventually fell in love. They got engaged in 2003 during a four-day vacation to a South African game reserve.
Charlie Woods – parents’ divorce
The couple had two children together. In 2007, their daughter Sam Alexis was born, and in 2009, Nordegren gave birth to a boy, Charlie Axel.
But the fact that the marriage was under severe pressure became very clear in 2009. In December that year, all hell broke loose when Tiger Woods’ extramarital affairs were exposed in the media. The man who introduced Woods to Nordegren, Parnevik, was remorseful.
“I’m kind of filled with sorrow for Elin since me and my wife are at fault for hooking her up with him, and we probably thought he was a better guy than he is,” he said.
Woods took a break from golf to focus on the family and his marriage, but too much had been ruined. The couple divorced in 2010; Nordegren is said to have received $100 million in the settlement. She was also awarded monthly child support of $20,000, as well as the couple’s home in Windermere, Florida.
These days, the former model lives in a new, luxurious home.
Following Woods and Nordegren’s divorce, the couple agreed to have a civil relationship to make it easy for their children. They still co-parent them together.
In a 2010 interview with People, Nordegren only had good things to say about her former husband.
“I wish him all the best in the future, as a person and as an athlete,” she said. “I know he is going to go down as the best golfer that ever lived, and rightfully so, I feel privileged to have witnessed a part of his golfing career.”
Naturally, being the wife of Tiger Woods means you will automatically be in the spotlight as well.
Stayed outside the spotlight
Nordegren, however, didn’t do any interviews during the time the couple was married. Why?
“My plan was to just stay the way I was,” she explained in 2010. “For my kids, I felt that remaining private was the only normalcy. I could give them since they have a very famous dad. But after everything that happened and everything that was written and speculated — what I did or didn’t do — I felt like setting some things straight.
“I’m so embarrassed that I never suspected — not a one,” she added. “For the last 3 1/2 years, when all this was going on, I was home a lot more with pregnancies, then the children and my school.”
Both Nordegren and Woods have moved on with their lives. Tiger continued with his golf career, and his son Charlie has also become very interested in the sport as well.
Born on February 8, 2009, it didn’t take long before Charlie knew his way around a golf course. When his father was playing, he was often seen at the tournaments, and it didn’t take long before Charlie became interested in playing himself.
Tiger Woods has won 15 Majors during the span of his career, just three short of legend Jack Nicklaus. By age seven, Charlie had started competing himself, earning second place in the Kids Golf South Florida Tour in West Palm Beach, Florida.
