Golf

One of Tiger Woods' biggest rivals on the links thinks the golf superstar can still chase Jack Nicklaus' 18 majors ... telling TMZ Sports he believes "everyone" is pulling for him to make a HUGE comeback.

Vijay Singh -- the world's top-ranked golfer for several weeks in '04-'05 -- says now that Tiger's cleared to practice after having back surgery 6 months ago, he's not counting out a big return.

For the record ... Tiger's sitting at 14 majors, which is 2nd only to the Golden Bear.

Didn't take long for O.J. Simpson to reach out to his old NFL pals -- he called Eric Dickerson THE NIGHT he was released from prison ... this according to the Hall of Famer himself.

"He's good. He's really good," Dickerson told TMZ Sports ... "He's trying to get me to hang out with him."

Dickerson and Simpson were pretty tight before O.J. got locked up and have remained friendly throughout the years.

NFL legend Ronnie Lott -- along with several huge sports stars -- was evacuated from a hotel in Sonoma, CA minutes before it was engulfed in flames ... TMZ Sports has learned.

Lott, Byron Scott, Bret Saberhagen, Dan Jansen and more were all in town for the UCSF Medical Center Celebrity Golf Classic ... when the raging fires in Northern California began to spread in their direction.

The majority of the VIP guests were staying at the Fountaingrove Inn in Santa Rosa -- and when the flames began to get close, officials ordered the hotel to evacuate the guests.

We're told all of the celebrities made it out of the hotel -- including Lott who posed for a photo in the parking lot of the hotel with a friend, his wife, Karen (brunette) and ex-MLB star Saberhagen.

It's a good thing they got out when they did ... the hotel caught fire and burned down a short time later, a UCSF spokesperson confirmed to TMZ Sports.

A witness at the hotel tells us the situation escalated so quickly, one guest jumped out of the hotel window and suffered a broken arm trying to escape.

The tournament has been scrapped -- and some of the guests have already returned home ... including Byron Scott who arrived to LAX early Monday morning.

O.J. Simpson's getting the friendly neighborhood treatment in the Vegas community where he's shacking up, and it should stay that way ... unless a media circus spoils it.

Several homeowners in the area where Simpson's hanging out tell TMZ ... they have no problem with him being there as long as media presence in the 'hood doesn't get crazy. We're told restaurants and other business establishments nearby don't care if O.J. pops in ... and one restaurant owner says he'll gladly serve him a steak, just like anyone else.

As for Simpson's favorite hobby, golf ... our golf course sources tell us he's welcome everywhere within driving distance. We couldn't find any course enforcing an O.J. ban, and one golf course staffer told us they might even invite Simpson to participate in a tournament.

As we reported ... O.J.'s staying in a sprawling Las Vegas estate in a gated community, right next to a golf course.

O.J. Simpson has served his time and has every right to be out on a golf course, so says PGA legend Gary Player who says he'd definitely play 18 with The Juice.

"He served his term," Player told us at LAX ... "When a man has served his term, he must be forgiven. He must go ahead now and live his life."

The 81-year-old hall of famer also doesn't understand why people have been blowing off golf outings with President Donald Trump ... saying golf should NOT be about political views.

Is Tiger Woods banging the general manager of his Florida restaurant?

Sure looks like it ... especially after the way they cozied up together this weekend at the President's Cup.

Tiger was arm-in-arm with Erica Herman, who was ID'd on TigerWoods.com as the GM of The Woods, which touts itself as "Tiger's flagship restaurant" in Jupiter.

Plus, Herman was sporting a "player spouse" credential on the links, according to Golf.com.

The last time Woods commented on a relationship is back in August when he shot down reports he was dating Kristin Smith -- a woman he dated in 2016.

So far, Woods has yet to confirm he and Herman are "official" -- but c'mon.

Nothing says "You Can't Sit With Us" like Donald Trump's 3 predecessors crashing the Presidents Cup to watch the first tee shots -- sans the current Prez ... who loves golf.

Barack Obama, George W. Bush and Bill Clinton attended the trophy presentation together Thursday at Liberty National Golf Club in New Jersey, before the foursome matches kicked off between America and its international competition.

The ex-Presidents looked super chummy, greeting the crowd and shaking hands. The irony, of course, is Prez Trump is a big-time golfer, and even has a golf course just 40 miles away from where the ex-Presidents were chilling.

Then again, Trump has bigger things to worry about now -- while these guys have done their duty already.

O.J. Simpson's salivating over getting back into the swing of things after prison ... and yes, that includes golf. LOTS of golf.

O.J.'s lawyer, Malcolm LaVergne, tells TMZ ... Juice, for starters, has narrowed down around 5 potential residences of where he might live in Florida following his prison release. He'll have to submit a parole plan on exactly where he'll live, so he's still mulling it over.

As for who owns the homes ... not his 2 kids. LaVergne says there's no rift between O.J. and his children, but he doesn't want to impose and draw unwanted attention to them. So the people who own the homes, LaVergne says, are "wealthy and supportive friends."

One pad might be out the window because LaVergne tells us it got hit hard by Hurricane Irma.

Once settled, we're told O.J. plans to get back into shape so he can golf as often as he wants. As LaVergne put it, the man loves to golf but wants to lay low. Good luck with that.

Eric Dickerson has high hopes for his old pal O.J. Simpson when he gets out of jail later this fall ... but his highest is hittin' the green with him.

We got the NFL Hall of Famer Sunday at LAX and asked what he thought of O.J.'s imminent release after being granted parole in July ... which could see him out as early as October.

Eric makes no bones about it -- he wants O.J. to stay out of trouble this time around ... something he says he warned him about before his 2008 conviction.

ESPN analyst Byron Scott says the fantasy football auction sketch that aired on the network is "unacceptable" ... but he's not calling for the producer to get fired.

The network has already apologized for the sketch which showed a white man auctioning off players (many of them black) to a white crowd. Critics say it resembled a slave auction.

Stars like Kevin Durant and Odell Beckham made it clear the sketch was NOT cool with them.

So, we asked Scott -- who often appears on ESPN's "The Jump" -- how he felt about the situation.

"It is unacceptable ... I thought we've come a lot further than we have. Obviously we have not. We have a ways to go."

Scott says he hopes the producer of the segment can learn from his mistakes.

With Scott being an avid golfer, we also asked the NBA legend if he would ever play on a Trump course.

Hint: Don't book a tee time at Doral any time soon ...

John Daly says he truly feels for Tiger Woods -- and he's rooting for the golfer to overcome his Rx pill demons and return to the course ... because the sport really needs him.

"It's sad what's going on in his life," Daly said in response to Tiger's DUI toxicology report which showed Woods was on multiple prescription drugs and marijuana at the time of his arrest.

"Me personally, I wanna see him come back."

"He's so close to doing what nobody else has done in the game of golf and I just hope he comes through it and gets healthy and gets back out here 'cause this tour needs him."

Tiger Woods had 5 different drugs in his system at the time of his DUI arrest -- including painkillers and THC, the main chemical compound in marijuana.

The Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office released the toxicology report from the May 29 arrest -- in which Tiger was whacked out of his mind when officers found his car on the side of the road.

The report shows Tiger tested positive for Hydrocodone (painkiller, generic form of Vicodin), Hydromorphone (powerful painkiller known as Dilaudid), Alprazolam (aka Xanax), Zolpidem (sleeping pill also known as Ambien) and THC.

Woods had chalked up the arrest to an unexpected reaction to prescription medication -- "I didn't realize the mix of medications affected me so strongly."

He never mentioned weed.

Woods announced he was getting treatment after the arrest and later struck a deal with prosecutors to enter a DUI diversion program.

The program essentially means Woods gets 12 months probation and he's required to complete DUI education classes.

Tiger Woods has broken his silence about his dating life to let everyone know he broke up with his hot blonde girlfriend, Kristin Smith ... last year.

Tiger Woods has struck a deal in his DUI case -- and has agreed to enter a DUI diversion program for 1st time offenders as a result of his May 29 arrest, officials say.

The golfer's DUI case was scheduled to go before a judge in Palm Beach County early Wednesday morning where his lawyer was expected to enter a not guilty plea.

Woods did not personally appear in court -- however, his attorney met with prosecutors and worked out a deal to enter the county's first time DUI offender diversion program, State Attorney's Office rep Mike Edmonson tells TMZ Sports.

According to prosecutors, the program requires offenders to plead guilty to reckless driving -- and in exchange they get 12 months probation and are required to complete DUI education classes.

The offenders are also prohibited from drinking alcohol or taking drugs during the probation period.

This all stems from a May 29 incident -- when cops found Woods passed out behind the wheel of his banged up Mercedes-Benz around 2 AM.

Woods was completely out of it -- but insisted he wasn't drunk, it was an unexpected reaction to mixed prescription medication.

Tiger was charged with 3 misdemeanor counts -- DUI, reckless driving and improper stopping. If he completes the DUI diversion program, the reckless driving conviction will be wiped from his record.

Tiger Woods is teein' off on marine life -- and he's doin' it with a ripped bod.

Tiger shared a photo of him freediving in the Bahamas with his kids on Friday ... and from the looks of it, the golf G.O.A.T. bagged himself a pretty legendary lobster.

Seriously -- that thing is HUGE. Even Tiger looks amazed at the catch.

Not bad for a dude 1 month outta intensive rehab ... after getting booked for a DUI in May.

Keep enjoying that island sun, Tiger!

Sad news for famed golf commentator David Feherty ... who revealed his son, Shey, passed away from a drug overdose on his 29th birthday.

"My first born son is gone from me, dying from an overdose on his 29th birthday," Feherty posted on social media ... "Bless his sweet heart, I will fight on."

Shey died on July 29th. Funeral services are set for Tuesday.

The former PGA golfer has also battled substance abuse himself and previously said alcoholism and mental illness run in his family.

In lieu of flowers, the family is asking mourners to donate to the Center for Addiction and Recovery Studies.