Fuzzy Zoeller made a racially insensitive “joke” about Tiger Woods at the 1997 Masters, telling a TV crew that people should congratulate Woods but “tell him not to serve fried chicken next year,” then adding, “or collard greens or whatever the hell they serve.”

What he said about Tiger

  • During the 1997 Masters, as Woods was cruising to a record-breaking victory, Zoeller referred to him as “that little boy” and commented that officials should pat him on the back but “tell him not to serve fried chicken next year.”
  • As he walked away, he snapped his fingers and added, “or collard greens or whatever the hell they serve,” invoking racist food stereotypes historically aimed at Black people.

Why it was controversial

  • The remarks were widely condemned as racist because they played on long-standing stereotypes about Black Americans and food, made at the exact moment Woods was transforming golf’s image globally.
  • The incident quickly overshadowed Zoeller’s reputation as a popular, joking figure on tour and became a defining controversy in discussions of race and golf in the late 1990s.

How Zoeller responded

  • Within days, Zoeller issued a public apology, saying his comments were not intended to be racially derogatory and that they were meant as a joke that went bad.
  • In later interviews and a 2008 Golf Digest essay, he said the fallout was “the worst thing” he had gone through in his life, noting he cried many times and received death threats for years.

How Tiger Woods responded

  • Woods released a statement saying he was initially shocked and disappointed, calling the attempt at humor “out of bounds,” but added that he knew Zoeller as a jokester and believed there was no personal animosity intended.
  • Woods said he accepted Zoeller’s apology and urged everyone to move on, helping to calm some of the media storm even though the incident continued to follow Zoeller’s public image.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.