Tiger Woods, Nike end partnership after more than 27 years

Tiger Woods has gone from “Hello, world,” to saying goodbye to Nike.

Woods ended months of speculation by making it official Monday that the partnership between golf’s biggest star and the powerful Swoosh brand is ending after 27 years, a move that raises questions about the future of both in the sport.

Woods in a social media post thanked Nike co-founder Phil Knight for his “passion and vision” that brought them together when he turned pro.

“Over 27 years ago, I was fortunate to start a partnership with one of the most iconic brands in the world,” Woods wrote. “The days since have been filled with so many amazing moments and memories, if I started naming them, I could go on forever.”

Nike also posted to social media, saying in a photo, “It was a hell of a round, Tiger.”

Woods signed a five-year deal worth $40 million when he turned pro. It was shocking money at the time to most in the industry except Nike, and his father.

As recognizable as any athlete in the world, Woods became the face of Nike Golf and had his own “TW” brand.

On the golf course, Woods set records as the youngest to win the Grand Slam at age 24, the only player to hold all four major titles at the same time and his 15-shot win at the U.S. Open, the largest margin for a major in golf history.

Moss, Fitzgerald are among 19 players and 3 coaches voted into College Football HOF

Randy Moss and Larry Fitzgerald were among 19 players and three coaches in the College Football Hall of Fame class announced Monday.

Warrick Dunn of Florida State, Toby Gerhart of Stanford, Julius Peppers of North Carolina and Danny Woodhead of Chadron State also were elected to the Atlanta-based hall by the National Football Foundation.

Coaches elected were Frank Solich of Nebraska and Ohio, Mark Dantonio of Cincinnati and Michigan State and Danny Hale of Division II West Chester and Bloomsburg.

Moss, inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2018, was one of college football’s most electric performers in his two seasons at Marshall.

Fitzgerald was the 2003 Heisman Trophy runner-up and Biletnikoff Award winner while playing for Pittsburgh, where he totaled 161 catches for 2,677 yards and a school-record 34 touchdowns over his two seasons.

Franz Beckenbauer, who won the World Cup both as player and coach for Germany, dies

BERLIN >> Franz Beckenbauer, who won the World Cup both as player and coach and became one of Germany’s most beloved personalities with his easygoing charm, has died. He was 78.

Beckenbauer’s death was first announced through a statement from his family to German news agency dpa and then confirmed by the German soccer federation.

“It is with deep sadness that we announce that my husband and our father, Franz Beckenbauer, passed away peacefully in his sleep yesterday, Sunday, surrounded by his family,” the family said in its statement. “We ask that we be allowed to grieve in peace and be spared any questions.”

The statement did not provide a cause of death. The former Bayern Munich great, who became affectionately known as the “Kaiser” — or “Emperor” — had struggled with health problems in recent years.