Tiger Woods to be honored at Orange County Hall of Fame among other athletes 

Tiger Woods is no stranger to Halls of Fame. The Big Cat has been a member of the California Hall of Fame since 2007 and the World Golf Hall of Fame since 2021. Now, a new accolade of this kind takes him back to his roots.

Orange County in California has decided to institute its own Hall of Fame and in the first class of inductees is Tiger Woods. The induction ceremony would take place on Friday, January 12, at the Civic Center Drive in Santa Ana.

Tiger Woods was born and raised in Orange County, and it was there that he took the first steps in what would become his meteoric golf career. In fact, Woods got his start playing at the Navy Golf Course in Los Alamitos, where his father Earl had playing privileges.

Woods became an amateur superstar while still living in Orange County. His career in the category included 15 wins before he left the county to join Stanford University. Over the next two years, he would go on to win five more events.

The Orange County Hall of Fame will honor 10 personalities from Music, Arts & Entertainment, Sports, Business and more in its inaugural class. In addition to Tiger Woods, the other sports star selected is the late Kobe Bryant.

Bryant was not born in Orange County, but played for 20 seasons for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). With that team, Bryant built one of the most spectacular careers of all time in basketball history.

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Who will join Tiger Woods and Kobe Bryant in the Orange County Hall of Fame?

Orange County Hall of Fame will induct eight other personalities for its inaugural class.

Other athletes to be honored include American diver Greg Louganis, a two-time Olympic champion, as well as Amanda Beard, also a two-time Olympic champion. Both Louganis and Beard grew up in Orange County.

Of particular note is Gwen Stefani, a renowned American singer and songwriter. The Grammy Award winner and author of such hits as What You Waiting For? and Hollaback Girl, was born and raised in Orange County.

Walt Disney will also receive recognition next Friday. The creator of the Mickie Mouse universe and founder of what is now Walt Disney Productions, lived and worked in the county for most of his career.

Also to be honored are singer Bill Medley (Unchined Melody, among others), businessmen Frank Kao and Henry Segerstrom, and General William Lyon of the United States Air Force.

The idea for the Orange County Hall of Fame was born in early 2023, with the purpose of recognizing personalities who have made extraordinary contributions to the county's global development. The institution was founded on November 28 last year.