Fuzzy Zoeller‘s racially motivated comments towards Tiger Woods in 1997 at Augusta

Fuzzy Zoeller was known to be quite the golfer during his time. However, his comments toward Tiger Woods landed him in a bit of hot water.

Zoeller has had quite a record on the PGA Tour, including 10 wins of which two were major wins. He made more than $5 million during his career during a time when tournament purses were not much.

However, his comments against Tiger Woods will always be a stain on his career. In 1997, a young Tiger Woods stormed onto the Augusta Masters major. He became the first non-white golfer to win a major tournament, a giant leap for inclusivity in the world of golf.

Being a previous Masters winner, Zoeller could play on the Masters for as long as he liked. He played in the 1997 Masters and even made the cut but, like the entire field, was no match to Tiger Woods. Fuzzy Zoeller's remarks on Tiger Woods winning were less than impressive.

“He’s doing quite well, pretty impressive. That little boy is driving well and he’s putting well. He’s doing everything it takes to win. So, you know what you guys do when he gets in here? You pat him on the back and say congratulations and enjoy it and tell him not to serve fried chicken next year.Got it. Or collard greens or whatever the hell they serve," Zoeller said.

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Fuzzy Zoeller's racist remarks against Tiger Woods after 1997 Masters win: The fallout

Needless to say, Zoeller received massive backlash for his comment. While he claimed it to be a joke, his sponsors, Kmart and Dunlop, dropped him immediately. Soon, his public apology also appeared in the New York Times.

“My comments were not intended to be racially derogatory, and I apologize for the fact that they were misconstrued in that fashion. I’ve been on the tour for 23 years and anybody who knows me knows that I am a jokester," Zoeller said.

It’s too bad that something I said in jest was turned into something it’s not, but I didn’t mean anything by it and I’m sorry if I offended anybody. If Tiger is offended by it, I apologize to him, too," he added.

A month later, Woods and Zoeller met over lunch. It seemed that the matter had been sorted between the both of them, as they moved on from the situation. Speaking about it, Woods said:

”Fuzzy and I had a nice lunch conversation. I found out something I needed to know and it’s over. Hopefully, we will have a good tournament. Over time, we will see it be an incident that will make this better for golf.”