He was. Still doesn't change anything to me. He revolutionized the game. Growing up, I never played golf. I still had every Tiger Woods PGA tour game, and watched anytime he was on tv. EA Sports probably made a trillion dollars off that game.
I became a Tiger fan the day he came from behind to win his third straight amateur title.
Phil Mickelson won on the same day on the PGA Tour. The Tiger/Scott U.S. amateur final drew better ratings.
The next spring (1997) my father died on April 7th and was buried on the 10th. Tiger shot a 40 on the front nine at Augusta that day then blitzed the field to finish -18.
Watching Tiger got me through that weekend and gave me something to smile about. I never stopped watching until he stopped playing.
That being said, I don't think he's a very nice guy. Definitely was a fan of his game, but not the man.