Before 2005, Tiger Woods and Arch Manning’s father, Cooper, had never met. In fact, they both were busy making a name in their different worlds. But a chance encounter flipped the narrative, turning the legendary golfer into a fan. Peyton Manning was there to see it all play out and on his appearance on the podcast, We Need a Fourth, he told the world this never-before-heard story.

“Real quick, a Cooper Manning golf story,” said Peyton. “We play with Tiger Woods, not to name drop, on the very first hole, Cooper’s never met Tiger. Tiger’s kind of feeling him out. We’re down in Florida playing, and on the first fairway, Cooper says, ‘Tiger, anytime you want to borrow my 9 wood today, just grab it. You don’t have to ask me, just have at it.'”

“Cooper has a lot of woods. He’s very accurate. He hits it straight, but not so far due to some old injuries. But after that, Tiger Woods became the biggest Cooper Manning fan of all time.”

Peyton carried on as the other members of the podcast continued to laugh. The Hall of Famer was using his storytelling powers to great effect.

“Because most people don’t know what to say to the guy. And this is, what, 2005? I mean, to say he’s in his prime would be an understatement. It’s me, Cooper, Bubba Watson, and Tiger, and Hank Haney, but when [Cooper] told [Tiger] he could borrow his 9 wood, I’m telling you, I’ve never seen a guy go, ‘Alright, I like this guy. This is my kind of guy.'”

Although Peyton didn’t make it clear whether Woods took Cooper’s offer up or not, it’s clear that Cooper’s humor, followed by some decent golfing skills, impressed Woods, as most people were too intimidated to speak so naturally in front of him. At that time, Woods was in his prime, winning two major championships, his fourth Masters Tournament and his second Open Championship at St. Andrews. In early 2005, he reclaimed the Official World Golf Ranking No. 1 spot after a brief “slump” in 2004 and held it for most of the year.

Meanwhile, by 2005, Cooper Manning was no longer playing football because his career had ended over a decade earlier in 1992 when he was diagnosed with spinal stenosis. In fact, he was a partner at Scotia Howard Weil when he first met Tiger.

Now, while Cooper has his own personal stories with Woods, the connection is strengthened by the close friendship between Tiger and Peyton.

The Manning family has old ties with Tiger Woods

Since Peyton’s NFL retirement, he and Tiger Woods have been paired together in multiple high-profile golf events. In 2005, they played together at the Arnold Palmer Invitational and, in 2009, at the Quail Hollow Championship. However, that’s not all. In 2018 and 2019, they again paired together for the Pro-Am at the Memorial Tournament.

But their friendship wasn’t confined to the golf course. In 2020, they famously teamed up for ‘The Match: Champions for Charity’, where they defeated Phil Mickelson and Tom Brady to raise $20 million for COVID-19 relief. More importantly, they share a unique “kinship” due to their medical histories: Manning’s neck fusion and Woods’ back fusion surgeries.

As of now, their friendship remains close, but both are chasing different paths. While Peyton Manning has become a dominant figure in sports media and entertainment through his production company, Tiger Woods, now 50, is primarily focused on a return to competitive play.