When Tiger Woods calls your name on the first tee, even the steadiest hands can start to shake. And rightfully so! He has been an inspiration to so many pros, and an experience like this with your idol does that. A similar scenario occurred with Aaron Beverly at the 2022 Genesis Invitational. It left such an impact on Aaron that he says he “didn’t recognize his own hands.”

In 2022, Aaron Beverly was the recipient of the Charlie Sifford Memorial Exemption for the Genesis Invitational. Before the tournament began, he was at a pre-event press conference where Woods introduced him as the recipient.

“I’m looking forward to welcoming Aaron Beverly to The Genesis Invitational as the 2022 Sifford Exemption,” Tiger said, leaving Beverly in awe. Thanks to the exemption, Aaron got an opportunity to sit next to Tiger Woods at the press conference.

“I had Tiger introduce me at Genesis at the first tee. It was 6:40 in the morning. It was tee time, and he did the whole intro right, and I got to go to the tee, hit the first tee shot. I’ve never looked at my hands and not recognized my hands before. And I was holding the club, and I said, ‘Please just make contact.’ Stripped it. It was great. I was so happy. He’s like, ‘Hey, good shot.’ I said, Yes! That is why I practiced for. It is great. Made a birdie, I was like Cool, I’ll tell that story for the rest of my life,” said Aaron, sharing the experience on the Par 3 podcast.

Beverly respects Woods a lot, and he has made many memories with his dad thanks to the 82x PGA Tour winner. His first memory of watching Tiger play is of the 1997 Masters.

“We were on vacation in Monterey, and he had it on TV and we watched, and that was one of the first times I ever saw my dad cry because Tiger won. And the last time I ever got to watch with my dad was the 2019 Masters when Mr. Woods won,” shared Beverly.

Unfortunately, Aaron didn’t make the cut that year. He started strong with two birdies and just one bogey in the first 7 holes. But then on hole 8, he took 9 shots to complete a par 4 hole. On hole 9, he hit a double bogey. By the end of Round 1, he had 5 more bogeys and 3 more in Round 2 to finish 14 above par.

The Par 3 podcast shared an Instagram video where Beverly is sharing the entire experience. It features Aaron along with the host and a couple of other guests. The caption of the video reads, “Tiger Woods takes the mic to introduce Aaron Beverly at the Genesis Invitational.” You can see it below:

Tiger Woods has been hosting the Genesis Invitational since 2020. It is a key PGA Tour event, now with signature status, offering $20 million purse. The Invitational also benefits his nonprofit, the TGR Foundation. The 2025 event also featured the California Rises initiative, through which Genesis, TGR Live, and the PGA TOUR donated $8 million for wildfire relief.

Woods has always been one of the first golfers to appreciate a fellow golfer’s play, and to be nervous when he is watching you play is also only fair. Something similar happened during the first round of the U.S. Junior Amateur Championship this year when the crowds flocked to see Chase Kyes, Davis Ovard, and Charlie Woods. Reason? Tiger was following this group.

“It was a lot of fun,” Ovard told the Free Press. “This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to play with Charlie. And to have Tiger watching you, it’s crazy, but it’s so much fun. The first few holes, obviously, I was nervous with this crowd, but once I settled in and relaxed, I was just enjoying the moment.”

Now you know Beverly was in the 2022 Genesis Invitational because of the Charlie Sifford Memorial Exemption, but do you know what it is?

The Charlie Sifford Memorial Exemption

The Charlie Sifford Memorial Exemption is an annual exemption given to a golfer from a minority community. It was introduced in 2009 but renamed in 2017 to honor Charlie Sifford. Sifford was the first African-American golfer to compete on the PGA Tour. Charlie faced racial barriers early in his career due to the “Caucasians only” clause in the PGA of America. However, he managed to earn a PGA membership in 1961.

Not just that, he became the first African-American to ever win a PGA Tour event in 1967 at the Greater Hartford Open. He also won the Los Angeles Open in 1969. The exemption serves to honor his legacy by providing opportunities for promising minority golfers to participate in a major PGA Tour event.

Tiger respects Charlie a lot. “I named my son after Charlie; he meant that much to me and my family,” Woods said. In 2025, Tiger announced Danny List as the recipient of this exemption.

The Charlie Sifford Memorial Exemption allows many golfers from the minority community to play the game. For Aaron Beverly, it was a once-in-a-lifetime experience shared with one of golf’s greatest. Danny List. enjoyed the same experience in 2025, and it will be someone else in 2026.