Tiger Woods: The College Years

As Tiger prepares for his comeback at the Masters, SI looks back to his years at Stanford (1994-96), where he won multiple titles and cemented his status as the world's next great golfer.

Woods was recruited very heavily by many of the top college golf schools but chose Stanford, the 1994 NCAA Division I champion.

Woods and his teammates watch the action during a tournament at Ohio State.

When Tiger arrived at Stanford in the fall of 1994, he was already well known in the golf world. During Woods's first year of college, he won the U.S. Amateur title and qualified to play in the Masters.

In his freshman year, Woods was voted Pac-10 Player of the Year, First Team All-America and Stanford's Male Freshman of the Year.

Not every putt went in for Tiger, but he still managed to win the 1996 NCAA championship. He is the only NCAA champion to also win three amateur titles.

Woods shakes hands with Jack Nicklaus after receiving the 'Jack Nicklaus College Player of the Year' award in June 1996.

Tiger acknowledges the crowd after winning the 1996 NCAA championship.

Woods and his Stanford teammate, Jerry Chang, shake hands with an Oklahoma State golfer after a match. Chang remains one of Woods' closest friends.

When Eldrick Woods turned 21 in December 1996, he legally changed his first name to Tiger. On the campus of Stanford, however, he was still known as "Urkel" by his college teammates.

At Stanford, Tiger's press conferences didn't demand the media attention they do today.

Woods shows his disgust after missing a short putt.

Tiger takes a break from the links to enjoy a milk shake.

It wasn't all about golf for Tiger at Stanford. He studied economics and planned to major in it until leaving after his sophomore year to turn pro.

Woods turned pro in August 1996 and immediately signed endorsement deals with Nike and Titleist. He would go on to win the Las Vegas International and the Disney/Oldsmobile Classic -- earning close to $800,000 in just eight events.

By the end of 1997, Tiger's first full year on the PGA tour, he was the leading money winner ($2.07 million) and reached No. 1 in the world rankings in his 42nd week as a pro.