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Tiger Woods' career timeline

No golfer in history has reached the highest of highs and the lowest of lows as Tiger Woods has. From his record-breaking performances to his off-the-course scandals, we take a look at Tiger's career arc.

1994

Tumor removal: When Woods was a student at Stanford University, he had a benign tumor removed from his left knee.

1996

Woods won the third of his back-to-back-to-back titles at the U.S. Amateur. This third win came in a playoff after being down two strokes with three holes to play in the 36-hole final match.

1997

First major victory: The 21-year-old Woods didn't just win the Masters, he obliterated the field by 12 shots, announcing his presence on golf's grandest stage at Augusta National.

2000

Major triumphs at historic courses: In the U.S. Open at Pebble Beach, Woods crushed all comers by 15 shots and was the only player to finish under par. Later that summer, no one came within 8 shots of him at St. Andrews to win the Open Championship at 19 under.

2001

The Tiger Slam: Eight months after his PGA Championship victory at Valhalla, Woods went into the Masters in search of his fourth consecutive major victory. When he held off David Duval by 2 shots, Woods owned all four major trophies at one time, which was dubbed the Tiger Slam.

2002

Cyst removal, fluid drain: In December 2002, Woods had a benign cyst removed from his left knee and fluid drained from around one of his ligaments. He returned to play at the 2003 Buick Invitational, which he won.

2006

The death of Earl Woods: Tiger's father, who taught him the game, died in May. The elder Woods ingrained so many lessons into his champion son, and his death left a void for the greatest golfer of this generation.

Shoulder: After winning the World Golf Championships-Bridgestone Invitational and the Deutsche Bank Championship in back-to-back weeks, Woods was unsure whether he would be able to play in the World Golf Championships-American Express Championship because of an injured muscle in his left shoulder blade. He did, in fact, play the event, winning with a total of 23 under.

2007

Tiger becomes a dad: Woods' daughter, Sam, was born to Tiger and Elin Woods. Almost two years later, in February 2009, the couple had a second child, Charlie.

Ruptured ACL: Woods ruptured the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee while at home running after the 2007 British Open, but he decided against surgery. He went on to win five of his next six events.

2008

Arthroscopic knee surgery: Two days after finishing second at the 2008 Masters, Woods had arthroscopic knee surgery to clean out cartilage. He was expected to recover in four to six weeks, and he returned to action at the U.S. Open. The result? He won.

ACL repair: Woods had reconstructive surgery on the damaged ACL and missed the remainder of the 2008 season. In addition to the ACL problem, Woods had a double stress fracture in his left tibia as a result of preparation for the 2008 U.S. Open.

2008-09

Torn right Achilles tendon: At the 2010 Masters, Woods revealed that he tore his right Achilles tendon in 2008 and reinjured the tendon several times in 2009, yet continued to play.

2009

Thanksgiving night scandal: Woods crashed his SUV, and in the aftermath his marriage and his image both unraveled. Eventually his serial adultery became public, and his golf game struggled in the years after the incident.

2010

Apparent neck injury: Woods was forced to withdraw from the Players Championship during the final round with a neck injury. An MRI revealed that Woods had an inflamed facet joint in his neck.

April 26, 2011

Left MCL sprain, strained left Achilles tendon: Woods announced he would miss the Wells Fargo Championship in North Carolina. During the third round of the Masters, he suffered a Grade 1 mild MCL sprain to his left knee and a mild strain to his left Achilles tendon while hitting a difficult and awkward second shot from the pine straw under the Eisenhower tree, left of the fairway at No. 17. Woods was able to continue playing at Augusta and later decided to seek a medical evaluation.

May 12, 2011

Knee, Achilles act up: Woods withdrew from the Players Championship with apparent injuries after nine holes (shot 42). "The knee acted up, and then the Achilles followed after that, and then the calf started cramping up. Everything started getting tight," he said. Woods didn't play again until the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational in August 2011.

March 11, 2012

Injury to left Achilles tendon: Woods withdrew from the final round of the WGC-Cadillac Championship.

2013

Player of the Year: With five victories, but none in majors, Woods earned the PGA Tour's top honor as voted on by his peers. The season was by far his best since the scandal of 2009.

March 2, 2014

Back issues: Woods withdrew from the final round of The Honda Classic.

March 18, 2014

Back spasms: Woods announced he wouldn't play the Arnold Palmer Invitational, citing lingering pain.

April 1, 2014

Back surgery: Woods announced he would miss the Masters after undergoing a microdiscectomy for a pinched nerve, which had been hurting him for several months. Woods said he would return to golf "sometime this summer," which he did in late June at the Quicken Loans National.

Sept. 16, 2015

Back surgery again: Woods missed the cut in three of the four majors of 2015, but in August he posted his best finish of the year. That was his final start of the year, however, because Woods underwent a second microdiscectomy surgery in September. He said he hoped to return in "early 2016."

Oct. 28, 2015

Back procedure: About a month after his second back surgery in a year and a half, Woods announced he had undergone a follow-up procedure to relieve discomfort in the area. The procedure was performed by Dr. Charles Rich, the same neurosurgeon who performed the previous two surgeries.

Feb. 3, 2017

Back spasms: Woods withdrew before the second round of the Dubai Desert Classic, citing back spasms. Woods' agent, Mark Steinberg, said at the time that the problem was not related to nerve issues that had plagued the 14-time major champion over the past few years and resulted in three surgeries, the most recent in September 2015.

April 20, 2017

Woods announced he underwent successful back surgery to alleviate ongoing pain in his back and leg. "The surgery went well, and I'm optimistic this will relieve my back spasms and pain," Woods said via his website. "When healed, I look forward to getting back to a normal life, playing with my kids, competing in professional golf and living without the pain I have been battling so long."

May 29, 2017

Woods arrested: Tiger was charged with suspicion of driving under the influence in the early morning hours of Memorial Day near his home in Jupiter, Florida. Woods claimed alcohol was not a factor in the incident -- and his 0.00 breath test confirmed that -- but said instead he had an "unexpected reaction" to prescription medication.