Getty Erica Herman and Tiger Woods
Tiger Woods has made many headlines for his life off the golf course in the last several years and he’s currently involved in some legal disputes with his ex-girlfriend, Erica Herman. Woods and Herman dated for five years, with their first public appearance coming at the President’s Cup in September 2017. The couple broke up in October 2022.
Here’s what you need to know about Tiger Woods’ ex-girlfriend Erica Herman:
1. Erica Herman Grew Up in Florida & Met Tiger Woods When She Worked at a Bar During College
Herman is a Florida native who grew up just outside Boynton Beach, one of her old neighbors told The Palm Beach Post. She went to Santaluces High School and was a member of the cheerleading squad, the publication wrote. Her coach at the time, Ann McCurdy, told the Post that Herman always had a lot of energy and wasn’t afraid of being at the top of the pyramids.
After high school, Herman went to Palm Beach State College and the University of Central Florida. She attended UCF from 2004 to 2008 and studied political science and legal studies, graduating with a bachelor’s degree. Herman and Woods met when she was still an undergraduate at UCF and working as a bartender at the Blue Martini in Orlando, Page Six reported.
A future work colleague, Gianni Nailor, told the publication that Herman was working at the bar to pay for school and Woods was a customer there, which is how they met. Herman made her way up to the position of manager at the bar and stayed in touch with Woods, although their relationship was purely platonic at the time, her colleague shared.
In 2015, Woods opened a restaurant in Jupiter, Florida, called The Woods Jupiter, and hired Herman as the director of operations. Nailor worked at The Woods as a server assistant at the time and told Page Six that the restaurant’s employees knew that Herman was close with the owner. “People were scared to get too close to her,” he shared. “They kept it professional.”
Another former server assistant said Herman and Woods often met in Woods’ private dining suite at The Woods to discuss the business, Page Six shared. Another source told The Palm Beach Post that it appeared the relationship between the two seemed to be “strictly professional” at the time.
2. Tiger Woods & Erica Herman Began Dating in 2017 & She Moved Into His Home a Few Years Later
Woods and Herman made their first public appearance as a couple in September 2017 at the Presidents Cup. Herman was seen accompanying her boyfriend and wearing a “player spouse” credential, Golf reported. She was also seen at the opening ceremonies with the wives and girlfriends of other players.
In 2018, a friend of the pro golfer told People that they weren’t rushing to tie the knot but they were happy together. “No one has signed any paperwork,” the friend told the publication. “It’s not like they’re pledging their lives to each other. But she’s really nice and Tiger likes her.”
The friend also told the outlet that Woods enjoyed being in a relationship but didn’t want to date just anybody. “When he’s with someone, he really needs to be into her,” they added. In December 2021, People reported that Herman had moved in with Woods at his home in Jupiter, Florida. “They live together at his house now,” a source told People. “The kids like her,” they added, in reference to the golfer’s two kids with his ex-wife Elin Nordegren, daughter Sam and son Charlie.
3. Erica Herman Supported Tiger Woods After He Suffered Major Injuries in a Car Accident in 2021
Tiger Woods’ girlfriend Erica Herman spotted visiting him at the hospital t.co/gSxHOVW6Cx
Woods has gone through a difficult period in the last few years, suffering horrific injuries in a 2021 car crash, but Herman was by his side throughout his recovery. Woods’ friend Arjun Atwal told Page Six that Woods’ now-ex-girlfriend was his “main support system” throughout his post-accident surgeries and recoveries.
“She’s been 100 percent supportive, when he was down with his health and all that stuff,” Atwal said. “It’s not like he has a bunch of people around. She was right there for him.”
In fact, sources told Us Weekly that Herman was right by his side the moment she found out about his accident. “Erica dropped everything to be with Tiger the moment she heard what happened,” the source told the publication. “She’s been by his bedside, holding his hand and telling him everything’s going to be OK. He’s a champ and he’s got this. She’s been so compassionate and supportive — all his friends and family have. He couldn’t have asked for more in that regard.”
At the Masters in 2022, Herman praised Woods for his comeback to the sport after his injuries. “I mean, nothing ever surprises me about him,” Herman told Golf. “But he’d just worked so hard to be here, that was the one thing I knew: once he got here, he wasn’t going to go home.”
“This feels like a home game for him,” she continued. “This has been his home turf for so long. Everybody around the club knows him. They know us now, too.”
4. Erica Herman & Tiger Woods Broke Up in 2022 & Neither Party Commented Publicly on the Split
Herman and Woods quietly broke up in October 2022, though news of their split didn’t really break until March 2023, when court documents against Woods filed by Herman came to light. Afterward, an insider told People that Herman felt their relationship was “stale for a long time” but was upset that it ended. The source said Herman was very supportive of Woods throughout his recovery after his accident but then things began going “downhill.”
One of the reasons for the relationship taking a downturn, the source told People, was Woods’ “frustration over the injuries, some of which are not going to get much better.” Another reason was that the two were on different pages about the future of their relationship, with Herman wanting a more serious, long-term commitment, while Woods was apparently “getting restless.” They added, “It deteriorated further after he recovered from the accident.”
Us Weekly reported that a source shared, “Erica thought Tiger was never at home, and Tiger thought Erica was spending too much and living too lavish of a lifestyle,” and that led to an irreparable break in their relationship.
5. Erica Herman Filed 2 Lawsuits Against Tiger Woods & Accused Him of Evicting Her Unlawfully From His Home
The breakup came to light after Herman filed a pair of lawsuits against Woods. The first one was filed in October 2022 and accused Woods of unlawfully evicting her from his home in Jupiter, Florida. The second, filed on March 6, 2023, asked a judge to void a nondisclosure agreement (NDA) that Herman signed at the beginning of their relationship.
Court documents show that in the first lawsuit filed, Herman accused Woods through Jupiter Island Irrevocable Homestead Trust, the trust that owns his home, of breaking an oral tenancy agreement.
She stated that they broke up on October 13, 2022, and he told he she was no longer welcome at his Florida mansion. Herman argued that Woods used “trickery” to convince Herman to “pack a suitcase for a short vacation, and when she arrived at the airport, they told her she had been locked out of her residence.”
The complaint stated that those actions violated Florida law and the oral tenancy agreement, which would have apparently allowed Herman to live at Woods’ Florida home for five more years. Woods’ ex-girlfriend is seeking more than $30 million in damages.
Attorneys representing Woods’ trust filed a motion to dismiss the first lawsuit, arguing that Herman was not a tenant according to Florida law. It also stated that Woods and Herman entered into an NDA on August 9, 2017, which stated that any disputes between the couple had to be resolved “by mandatory BINDING confidential arbitration.”
Afterward, Herman filed another lawsuit, on March 6, 2023, attempting to nullify the NDA. The lawsuit cited the “Speak Out Act” and “Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act of 2021,” acts which void NDAs and pre-dispute arbitration agreements that were signed before sexual assault or harassment have taken place.
Herman has not accused Woods of sexual assault or harassment, in public or in her lawsuits. Woods’ attorneys responded in court filings arguing that Herman is not a sexual abuse victim but is a “jilted ex-girlfriend” and pointed out that she didn’t allege any sexual wrongdoing in her October 2022 lawsuit, TMZ Sports reported. They also argued that she was filing these lawsuits to make the situation public instead of going through private arbitration.