Tiger Woods is inarguably one of the greatest golfers of all time. With 82 PGA Tour victories and 15 major championships, second only to Jack Nicklaus, he redefined what dominance looks like in the sport. His ability to intimidate opponents and make the impossible look routine earned him the status of a legend. So naturally, you’d expect a player of his stature to have an equally stellar record in the Ryder Cup. But, it was hardly the case.

Tiger Woods’ Ryder Cup record is quite puzzling and simply doesn’t make sense. For being one of the most dominant players of all time, you’d automatically think that he would win at least half of the 40 matches he appeared in. But instead, his career Ryder Cup record stands at 13 wins, 21 losses, and 3 ties (13-21-3), and a win rate of just 35% across eight appearances between 1997 and 2018. That number is rather shocking, especially when you consider that between 1999 and 2010, he won close to 64 tournaments.

What’s more startling? Woods was part of a winning U.S. team just once, in 1999, and even then, it took a historic final-day rally at Brookline. In that event, he did manage to win his four-ball match with Steve Pate and defeat Andrew Coltart in the singles match (3&2). But that was the exception, not the rule.

In the 2010 Ryder Cup, when it was hosted at the Celtic Manor Resort in Wales, he showed a flicker of Ryder Cup form, winning three matches — two with Steve Stricker and one in the singles format against Francesco Molinari. That year, Team USA lost to Europe 14.5 to 13.5. But then came 2018 at Le Golf National in Paris, which was a complete washout. Tiger Woods lost all four of his matches, closing out his Ryder Cup career with a disappointing record. How could a man who spent over a decade as the World No. 1, who made winning look like a weekly habit, struggle so consistently in golf’s most prestigious team event?

One key issue could have been the pairings. Tiger Woods’ record in pairs matches was 9-19-1, and over eight Ryder Cups, he played with 14 different partners. But many say that Woods wasn’t exactly the kind of guy who did well in team events. He only had a winning record with one of his partners — Davis Love III (2-1-0), while his partnership with Jim Furyk was the next best one at 2-2-0. But more often than not, being paired with Tiger seemed to weigh heavily on his teammates, who either tried (and failed) to match his level or shrank under the pressure of not wanting to drag him down.

Despite the poor record, Woods still sits at No. 4 on the all-time U.S. Ryder Cup points list with 14.5 total points. But that’s more a product of longevity than success. His 1-7 team record is a head-scratcher for someone so synonymous with winning, and even fans couldn’t help but be puzzled at his record.

Tiger Woods’ Ryder Cup record has fans baffled

When Jamie Kennedy of Golf Digest tweeted the mind-bending stat — “From 1999 to 2010, Tiger won 34% of Tour events he played in. In his career, he won just 35% of his Ryder Cup matches.” — fans didn’t hold back. And, as you’d expect, many of them were all implying the same thing that Woods didn’t care. “He 100% gave no real shits about the Ryder Cup,” one fan said, and summed up pretty much what most of the fans said. Tiger Woods’ extreme individualistic mentality clearly didn’t seem to translate into team passion.

“It’s obvious he didn’t care about the Ryder Cup in the same way,” another added. And the stats back it. While he won 64 individual titles between 1999 & 2010, Woods only had 13 wins in his matches in the Ryder Cup. Another fan took a jibe at his personality — “That should tell you all you need to know had Tiger had changed from being the introvert he was then to who he is now.” And it was a fair point. Early-career Tiger Woods was famously closed off, fiercely focused, and not exactly known for being warm and fuzzy in the team room. That kind of intensity works great in stroke play. In team formats, not so much.

Then there was one comment that stood out the most— “When Tiger was asked about his Ryder Cup record years ago, he responded by asking the media what Nicklaus’ Ryder Cup record was and no one could tell him exactly. He then asked how many majors Jack had won and, obviously, everyone knew. Probably why we lose the Ryder Cup so often.” This particular comment stings the most because it might be the most revealing. To Tiger Woods, majors were the true measure of greatness. But the Ryder Cup? It clearly wasn’t the goal. And finally, one fan just cut straight to the point —“He sucked at the Ryder Cup.” It was blunt, but with a 13-21-3 record, it’s hard to mount a strong defense.