By Daniel Rapaport
A trio of Hall of Fame golfers—Annika Sorenstam, Babe Didrikson Zaharias and Gary Player—will receive the United States’ highest civilian honour, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, on Thursday from President Donald Trump.

W.L. Pate Jr., president of the Babe Zaharias Foundation, is expected to accept the medal in honour of Zaharias, who died in 1956.

The medal is described as a recognition of “an especially meritorious contribution to the security or national interests of the United States, world peace, cultural or other significant public or private endeavours.” Only four other golfers have received it: Arnold Palmer (2004), Jack Nicklaus (2005), Charlie Sifford (2014) and Tiger Woods (2019). Trump awarded Woods with the medal shortly after he won the 2019 Masters.

The White House announced in March that Sorenstam and Player would receive the honour, but Zaharias is a new addition.

Sorenstam, 50, dominated women’s golf from the mid-1990s through the mid-2000s. The Swede amassed 72 official LPGA Tour wins, including 10 majors, and was named player of the year a record eight times. She stepped away from playing full-time professional golf in 2008 and has since focused on philanthropic and business pursuits.

Zaharias is widely considered one of the finest athletes ever, having won gold medals in the 80-meter hurdles and javelin throw at the 1932 Olympics—all before she took up golf in 1935, at the age of 24, then became perhaps the greatest woman’s golfer in history. Like Sorenstam, she won 10 major championships and completed the Grand Slam in 1950, winning all three women’s majors at the time. She holds the distinction as the only woman ever to make a cut in a PGA Tour event, which she did three times.

Known as the “Black Knight” for his penchant for wearing all black, Player was one-third of golf’s “Big Three” alongside Nicklaus and Palmer. The South African is one of five players ever to complete the career Grand Slam by winning all four men’s majors, and he is the only non-American to have done so. He won 160 tournaments worldwide, including nine majors, and since his retirement he has remained an active presence in the game. He has designed over 400 golf courses worldwide and is the founder of the Player Foundation, which seeks to provide underprivileged children with access to education.

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By Keely Levins
Annika Sorenstam and Gary Player are joining the shortlist of golfers who have received the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

The White House announced on Friday that Sorenstam, a 10-time major winner on the LPGA Tour, and Player, one of only five players to win the men’s career Grand Slam, will be honoured on March 23 by President Donald Trump.

“It is an overwhelming feeling. I am grateful, I am humbled, I am moved, and I am blessed,” Sorenstam said in a tweet.

Sorenstam, 49, a native of Sweden, is the first female golfer to be a recipient, as well as the first female who is a naturalized citizen to receive the honour. Player, from South Africa, joins other members of golf’s “Big Three,” Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus. The other golfers to receive the honour are Tiger Woods and Charlie Sifford. Woods received his Medal of Freedom from President Trump in April 2019.

The Presidential Medal of Freedom is the highest honour a civilian can receive. The White House explains honorees as having “made exceptional contributions to the security or national interests of America, to world peace, or to cultural or other significant public or private endeavours.”

Sorenstam dominated the LPGA Tour in the late 1990s and early 2000s, winning 72 times, before retiring in 2008. In 2003, she made history by becoming the first woman since 1945 to play in a PGA Tour event, the Bank of America Colonial.

Sorenstam became a citizen of the United States in 2006, and during retirement, she has put her efforts towards the Annika Foundation, which, along with creating golf opportunities for young women, has goals to promote a healthy lifestyle, education and community.

Christian Petersen

Player, 84, won 24 times on the PGA Tour, nine of those coming in majors. He, too, started a foundation: the Player Foundation, which works to raise funds for underprivileged children.

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By Joel Beall
In an evening ceremony in the Rose Garden at the White House, President Trump bestowed the honour to Woods, who had his children, mother, girlfriend and caddie Joe LaCava in attendance.

“Today is my privilege to award our nation’s highest civilian honour to one of the greatest athletes in the history of sports, Tiger Woods,” President Trump said.

Woods is just the fourth golfer to be chosen, following Arnold Palmer (2004), Jack Nicklaus (2005) and Charles Sifford (2014). He is the first active athlete to receive the Medal of Freedom.

It’s an incredible privilege to be awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Considering the recipients, history, and what this means to me and my family, it’s also very humbling. Thank you all for your support and I hope this inspires others to never give up on their dreams. pic.twitter.com/33CJIHwQvz

— Tiger Woods (@TigerWoods) May 7, 2019

Trump went through a rundown of Woods’ career, from his amateur record to his breakthrough win at the 1997 Masters to his triumph at East Lake last fall.

“And then he won the Tour Championship. People forget that he won the Tour Championship last year,” Trump said.

An emotional Woods remarked the honour was an unbelievable experience, and thanked all those who have stood by him over the years.

“You’ve seen the good and bad, the highs and the lows, and I wouldn’t be in this position without your help,” Woods said. “I’ve battled, I’ve tried to hang in there, to comeback to play the great game of golf again. I’ve been lucky enough to do it again.”

Woods said the Masters was certainly one of the highlights of what he’s accomplished in his life on the golf course, and stopped to thank LaCava for “the good reads” to laughter.

The 43-year-old ended his speech by giving a nod to Sifford, who he called the “Grandpa I never had.”

“I became so close to him I named my son Charlie after him, so to be chosen as the next golfer after Charlie (to receive the honor) is truly remarkable.”

For those that missed the ceremony, rewatch the proceedings here:

HAPPENING NOW: Pres. Trump awards Tiger Woods the Presidential Medal of Freedom. https://t.co/8L8MYp1ueQ https://t.co/HpGPoRZsNa

— ABC News (@ABC) May 6, 2019

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By Christopher Powers
Following his historic win at the 83rd Masters, the tributes to Tiger Woods poured in on social media. Name a famous figure, any figure, and they likely sent out a tweet in congratulations of the now 15-time major winner. Movie stars, television stars, sports stars, fellow golfers and political figures were all watching in awe like the rest of us, and, as Francesco Molinari and co. learned the hard way, everyone was pulling for Woods. That includes former President Barack Obama and current President Donald Trump, who were each moved enough by Woods’ epic comeback to tweet him congrats. Apparently, we can all get along in 2019, all it takes is the guy who wears red and black to don another green jacket.

Trump was so moved, in fact, that he’s decided to award Woods with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, tweeting out on Monday afternoon that he had just spoken to Woods over the phone to congratulate him and inform him of the news:

Spoke to @TigerWoods to congratulate him on the great victory he had in yesterday’s @TheMasters, & to inform him that because of his incredible Success & Comeback in Sports (Golf) and, more importantly, LIFE, I will be presenting him with the PRESIDENTIAL MEDAL OF FREEDOM!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 15, 2019

This makes Woods the 33rd sports figure who will receive the award, but only the fourth golfer. Arnold Palmer was the first to receive it from George W. Bush in 2004, and Jack Nicklaus received it a year later. In 2009, Barack Obama presented it to Charlie Sifford, the first African American golfer to ever play on the PGA Tour. Woods has stated in the past that Sifford, who passed away in 2015, paved the way for his career. It’s fitting then that Woods, who was the first African American to win the Masters in 1997, will be the next golfer after Sifford to receive the medal, with the news breaking a day after his fifth Masters’ victory.

The Presidential Medal of Freedom, first established by President John F. Kennedy in 1963, is given to those who have made “an especially meritorious contribution to the security or national interests of the United States, world peace, cultural or other significant public or private endeavours”.

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