Tiger Woods talks loss of mom, 'iconic' Torrey Pines, 2025 goals, next meeting with Trump

Genesis Invitational tournament host Tiger Woods, who was originally going to play for the first time in 2025 at this event, arrived Sunday at Torrey Pines.

In tow was the president's granddaughter, Kai Trump. Woods was later seen on the driving range, getting a hug from Justin Thomas and chatting with Scottie Scheffler.

The early-round coverage was on Golf Channel and then CBS took over at 3 p.m. ET. It was shortly after the leaders reached the back nine that Woods joined host Jim Nantz and analyst Trevor Immelman in the CBS booth behind the 18th green.

Tiger Woods on recently losing his mom

It’s been a tough process to go through, but I’ve had amazing family support. All the players have reached out, that are playing here this week. The amount of texts and emails and nice messages of support that I got has really helped and has really meant a lot to me.

My mom was my rock. My dad worked at McDonnell Douglas at the time. … and mom would take me to every junior event in Southern California, whether it was nine holes out in Riverside or San Bernardino. She’d drive out there and keep score and walk every hole and how many putts I hit, how many fairways I hit and how many greens I hit. She tracked it all and gosh, all those days led us to the point where, she was, oh man, she was hard on me about school, about getting good grades and doing well in school and to be honest with you, if I didn’t get any homework done, I wasn’t allowed to go play. Not with my friends but just go play in general. It was important I got good grades and school came first before any sport I was playing. She meant everything to me. Losing her has been a very hard and difficult process to go through.

Tiger Woods on the San Diego community stepping up

We had a very difficult conversation with the Watanabes [the family that owns Riviera Country Club] at that particular time and that golf course would not host the tournament and where it would go. … and within a 48-hour period it looked like we could go back up to Monterey, we could go to Las Vegas or we could go to Phoenix or Palm Springs or we could come here. I wanted to keep the event at an iconic venue. Riviera is iconic to me. It was iconic when I first played there. It was my first tournament on the PGA Tour that I ever played. And I think this golf course is iconic and without the Century Club and without all the people here in San Diego supporting it, and having the support that we’ve had this entire week and having the players come play in it - we have 46 of the top 50 players playing this week - so it was a very stout field.

More on the city of San Diego supporting the Genesis

I think the whole community, how they’ve all joined in and this has been a community effort, all of San Diego has come together to make this happen. Southern California was under some very dire times and I consider San Diego part of So-Cal so to keep the event in So-Cal and be able to raise over $8 million, and Genesis is donating every single car this week and so we’re trying to help all the people that have been struggling and will continue to struggle because of the fires. This event will go a long way towards that healing process, but still a lot of the people in Southern California need to heal.

Tiger Woods said he had not yet met Justin Thomas’ daughter

I was hoping to get out here this week and play and meet his little girl out there. I haven’t met her yet, little Molly Grace. Hopefully we can do that when we get back home. (Editor's note: Tiger did get to meet her a few minutes after he left the booth. A CBS camera caught Tiger greeting Thomas’ wife Jillian and Molly.)

Why the PGA Tour stop in San Diego means so much to Tiger Woods

I started my PGA Tour career up at Riv at 16 years old. I remember coming down here to the old Andy Williams and watching the guys play. Who did you watch? There was one guy my dad said you gotta watch hit a golf ball, with a 1-iron, it was on the last hole, Andy Bean. And so this was the first tournament I ever came to, a Tour event, and then the second event I ever went to was at Riv.

Why did you have 'all this massive success' at Torrey Pines?, asks Jim Nantz

I don’t know. I’ve success either on the North Course or the South Course or the U.S. Open. I won the junior world here when I was 15. I was able to win that. I’ve just always liked Torrey Pines. I know it’s been re-done a bunch of times. Even through all those re-dos, I’ve done well. I don’t know why that is but I just feel comfortable. I can read the Poa greens here. I feel very comfortable on Poa, so just seeing the putts and hitting them… I like to hook my putts a little bit. Maybe that helps on Poa.

As Scottie Scheffler lined up an eagle putt on 18, Nantz asked Tiger Woods: How much did you live for moments like this?

Like right now, I’m in the moment. I love it. I’m right here with him right now. I love these moments. It’s why you spend all those late hours, and you’re dreaming for this one occasion.

On the swing of Ludvig Aberg, who would go on to win

Not a whole lot can go wrong with it. Occasionally he might speed up a bit and get stuck under but other than that, he hits this tight little draw.

On Tiger Woods' goals this year

My goal was to play more and I haven't played. Got to work on that. This process was unexpected so I'll get back after it and look forward to playing some bigger events. 

Tiger Woods on the state of men's professional golf

I think we’re in a very positive place right now. We had a meeting with the President. Unfortunately I had some other circumstances that came up but Jay [Monahan] and Adam [Scott] they did great during the meeting. We have another subsequent meeting coming up. I think things are going to heal quickly. We are getting this game going in the right direction, it’s been headed in the wrong direction for a number of years. The fans want all of us to play together, all the top players to play together and we are going to make that happen.

'It could be this year? Or it could be very soon this year?,' asked Nantz

Yes. Yes and yes. [Tiger laughs]