"Person of the Year" No.1 Tiger Woods, No.1 Term LIV Golf

Despite Only Three Appearances... 'Tiger Woods' Tops Person Category Searches
'LIV Golf' Leads Term Category... Record-Breaking Prize Money and Transfer Fees Spark Numerous Topics

Tiger Woods.

[Asia Economy Reporter Seohee Lee] This year, the most searched golf figure on Google in the United States was "Tiger Woods," and the top golf term was "LIV Golf."

According to data released on the 12th (local time) by the U.S. golf media Golf Digest, the most Googled golf figure in the U.S. in 2022 was Tiger Woods, and the top golf term was LIV Golf. The survey compiled the top 10 most searched golf-related keywords and presented the search interest data for each term.

Among golf figures, Tiger Woods ranked first, proving his enduring influence. Despite participating in only three tournaments this year due to aftereffects from a traffic accident in February last year, he topped the list of most searched individuals. Woods returned to the PGA Tour season's first major, the Masters, in April after 509 days since the accident. He then played in two more major tournaments but withdrew due to leg pain, completing only nine rounds. He missed the cut at the Open Championship in July and has not competed since.

Nevertheless, Woods attracted "clouds of spectators" at every tournament he entered, creating a buzz. After his tee shot on the 18th hole of the Old Course at St Andrews, where the Open Championship was held, Woods was seen with teary eyes and received comforting applause from the watching crowd.

Phil Mickelson, who made headlines with disparaging remarks about the PGA Tour, ranked second among individuals. Mickelson recorded 25% of the search volume that Tiger Woods received.

Mickelson, with 45 PGA Tour wins and the record for the oldest major winner, stirred the U.S. golf world this year with controversial remarks targeting the PGA Tour, saying, "The greed of the PGA Tour is disgusting. The PGA Tour is not paying players what they deserve." As a result, his main sponsor, the global accounting and consulting group KPMG, announced it would not renew his contract and would end it early. Mickelson moved to LIV Golf this year with a contract estimated at around 200 million KRW.

Third place went to Rory McIlroy, who won three PGA Tour events this year, including the Tour Championship and the FedEx Cup. McIlroy made history by winning his third FedEx Cup title this year, following victories in 2016 and 2019, surpassing Tiger Woods' record.

McIlroy is regarded as a player who captured both money and fame this year. While top players were defecting to LIV Golf with multi-million-dollar transfer fees, McIlroy teamed up with Woods to lead the "anti-LIV" golf movement. He received as much spotlight as LIV players with top performances, culminating in a perfect "happy ending."

LIV Golf.

The top golf term of the year was also "LIV Golf." Backed by the powerful Saudi Arabian sovereign wealth fund, LIV Golf launched its first season this year, generating massive buzz with record-breaking prize money and transfer fees. Golf fans focused on whether prominent PGA Tour players would transfer to LIV Golf, and every statement from these players was heavily reported.

Additionally, LIV Golf, emerging as a new league to rival the PGA Tour, caused friction over prize money scale, world ranking calculation methods, and other issues, stirring controversy.

Other top golf terms included "LIV Golf Leaderboard" in second place and "US Open Golf" in third.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.