May2 Woods Jordan
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Two of the biggest stars in the history of sport are playing golf together in front of packed galleries this afternoon.
Tiger Woods and Michael Jordan are partners in the pro-am at the PGA Tour’s Wachovia Championship in North Carolina.
About 5,000 fans cheered Woods and Jordan, a five-time Most Valuable Player in the National Basketball Association, as they began their round at the Quail Hollow Club in Charlotte.
Less than 1 1/2 hours later, the gallery had grown to about 10,000 people. Such events, which match a professional golfer with amateur partners, often have groups that are followed by few spectators beyond the families of those involved. When Woods plays in Tour events, half the crowd usually is with his group.
“This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” said Katie Simmons, a 62-year-old fan asked her boss for the day off to attend today’s practice round. “I love Tiger and I love Michael Jordan, and I will never get the chance to be this close to either one of them again.”
Simmons, a Charlotte resident, snapped photos of the duo with a disposable camera from behind the third green as Jordan puffed on a cigar and Woods practiced his putting.
Woods, 31, and Jordan, 44, are close friends and have played recreational rounds together. In 2004, Jordan spoke to the U.S. Ryder Cup team before its loss to the Europeans.
The athletes also are prime endorsers of Nike, each having his own line of apparel.
