$1.3B Tiger Woods gets candid about Sun Day Red’s rookie ambassador signing

Tiger Woods’ Sun Day Red on Tuesday unveiled PGA Tour rookie Karl Vilips as its first brand ambassador. The 23-year-old Australian golfer, who shares Stanford as an alma mater with Woods, is set to make his season debut in the clothing line at the Mexico Open this weekend.

For the unversed, Vilips was once dubbed a child prodigy before gaining popularity at Stanford. Having followed a similar progression as Woods, the young golfer won the 2024 Pac-12 Conference title and was named first-team All-Pac 12 as a junior and senior while in college. Woods addressed his brand’s latest signing and admitted being ‘excited’ for it. The 15-time major champion admitted that the ‘new company’ is aiming at big growth.

The signing announcement came ahead of Tiger Woods’ TGL outing at SoFi Center, Florida, his first competitive outing since his mother Kutilda’s passing on February 8.

Speaking about signing Karl Vilips under Sun Day Red, Tiger Woods said, as quoted by ASAP Sports:

“Well, it's exciting for us as a new company that we're able to sign guys like Karl, and it's exciting. It's exciting for all of us to support us in starting his career. Just excited for this opportunity to grow the brand and be able to sign young kids that believe in what we're trying to do.”

Woods reiterated the thought process of signing Vilips in a news release on Tuesday where he lauded the player’s “relentless work ethic.” The 82-time PGA Tour winner stated that the 23-year-old’s ‘impressive track record and determination’ implies him making “significant impact quickly on the PGA Tour.” He also dubbed the Aussie golfer “one of the game's future stars.”

For the unversed, Woods, worth a whopping $1.3 Billion in 2025 as per Forbes, unveiled his personal apparel brand Sun Day Red last year. The company has since grown marginally in the golf products segment.

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Sun Day Red's rookie ambassador dubs Tiger Woods his idol

Karl Vilips was named the Korn Ferry Tour Rookie of the Year in 2024. The young golfer finished 19th in the circuit’s points list that year with several standout performances, including a victory at the Utah Championship in his fourth-ever Korn Ferry Tour start.

Speaking about his latest brand deal with Tiger Woods’ Sun Day Red, Karl Vilips said on Tuesday:

“It's a thrill to be a part of Sun Day Red, especially so early on as we start to grow the brand around the world… Tiger Woods was my idol growing up. ... I couldn't be more proud to be the brand's first official ambassador.”

For the unversed, Vilips was born in Australia and moved to the United States at age 11. The pro golfer attended Stanford. The 23-year-old turned pro in the summer of 2024. His win at the Utah Championship helped him earn his PGA Tour card via the top 30 on the season-long standings.

The young golfer, who identified Woods as part of his dream golf foursome alongside Jack Nicklaus and Roger Federer during the Junior Presidents Cup in 2018, will debut at this week’s Mexico Open at VidantaWorld as a Sun Day Red sponsored player. It is pertinent to note that he was sidelined from the season’s start due to injury.