Gold-digging mastermind? Or wholesome family gal? From high school cheer squad to PGA main squeeze,
we've got the nitty gritty details on Tiger's ex!
Erica Herman grew up
in south Florida, where she and Tiger Woods lived until their breakup. Back in the day,
she was a cheerleader at Santaluces High School in Boynton Beach,
and went on to Palm Beach State College and the University of Central Florida.
But her reputation came under fire when a wrongful-death lawsuit was brought against
Woods' restaurant, The Woods Jupiter, in May 2019. Woods and Herman were both named in the
suit. An employee, Nicholas Immesberger, was killed in a car crash in December 2018 after
working the lunch shift as a bartender. His parents alleged that he was served excessive
alcohol after his shift, despite staff knowing about his history of alcoholism.
"Well we're all very sad that Nick passed away. It was a terrible night, a terrible ending."
Both Herman and Woods were eventually dropped from the lawsuit. And the case
was later dismissed. As attorney Barry Postman told Golf Digest,
"It has been clear from the beginning that neither should have been included
in the suit despite the claims that they somehow contributed to the accident."
Herman and Woods reportedly first met while she was an undergrad student at
UCF. Herman studied political science and hoped to become a lawyer. She was
also bartending on the side. A former co-worker told Page Six,
"She worked at Blue Martini in Orlando as a bartender to get
through college. And he came to the bar [as a customer]."
When the golf pro opened The Woods Jupiter in 2015,
he hired Herman to manage, a move that made some uncomfortable. The former co-worker alleged,
"People were scared to get too close to her [because of her
access to the owner]. They kept it professional."
Another of Herman's co-workers told the outlet that while Herman had a "very direct" personality,
she was just keeping the interests of the group in mind, recalling,
"She decorated during the Christmas season — and she's Jewish."
In April 2017, Woods underwent a major back procedure. The spinal
fusion surgery became necessary after Woods injured his back to the point of
experiencing intense pain nearly every day. Woods explained to Centinel Spine,
"When I swung a golf club, it felt like I was playing the game bloody knuckles.
The uncomfortableness of when you hit your funny bone, how much that hurts,
now do that a thousand times per day, and see what that feels like."
"The searing pain going down my leg, from my hip all the way down, it just would never leave."
While Woods was in recovery post-surgery, many have said that no one was more supportive than
Herman. Woods' friend and fellow golfer Arjun Atwal told Page Six,
"She’s been 100 percent supportive, when he was down with his health and all that
stuff. […] It’s not like he has a bunch of people around. She was right there for him."
That wasn't the only health scare Woods suffered — and that Herman helped him through. In February
2021, Woods was involved in a single-vehicle crash that resulted in surgeries and physical therapy
described as, quote, "excruciating," and Herman was yet again by his side.
The couple enjoyed
a relationship for five years before they broke up. But some who know them well have insisted that
Herman pursued Woods for much longer than that. While the pair maintained a close professional
relationship for a number of years, it seems that for Herman, the bond might have felt like more.
Despite Woods being in a number of high-profile romances in the
years that he and Herman were reportedly colleagues — including one with Olympian
Lindsey Vonn and one with stylist Kristin Smith — a source close to
both Woods and Herman had a slightly different perspective. The insider told The Sun in 2020,
"Erica's been chasing Tiger around like a puppy for close to ten years.
I'm not sure if his wife knew, but I'm not sure how she couldn't know."
Sources have also indicated that even if their relationship was strictly professional at the
time, the duo often held private meetings when the golfer was in town to allegedly check on his
restaurant. As one Woods Jupiter employee told Page Six of the star's private suite,
"It was separate from the main dining room, with its own frontal access to
the building. She did definitely mention that [she and Woods] had some history."
One fact of Herman's
life that has been covered fairly significantly is her issue with past debt. In September 2018,
The Daily Mail noted that while Woods had pulled in a reported $1.62 million
following his comeback in golf, Herman has been in the hole for $240,000 for years.
According to the outlet, her money troubles link back to a failed business venture. Herman and
two business partners received a $200,000 investment from Tom Morris to open five
nightclubs in Orlando, Florida. The trio opened two clubs that failed and then ran out of money,
which prompted Morris to sue. He was awarded a judgment of just over $240,000,
which Herman dodged paying until she began working at The Woods Jupiter. From that point,
her wages were garnished to the tune of nearly $300 a week.
Herman has also experienced other financial troubles in the past, according to the outlet.
In 2012, a $13,000 BMW she owned was repossessed by the bank. And between 2012 and 2014 Herman and
her business partner, Jesse Newton, were served several eviction notices from their landlord.
"I just wanted us to have a life again. And be part of my kids' life."
If there are two people who might miss out the most in the wake of Woods and
Herman's relationship ending, it's Woods' two children with his
ex-wife Elin Nordegren. Arjun Atwal claimed that Herman had developed a
close bond with Sam and Charlie and that the feeling was mutual. As Atwal told Page Six,
"They love [Erica]. She's awesome with them. She's more like a friend to them than anything else."
"Ugh, that's awesome."
Atwal also added that far from being enemies or at odds with one another,
Herman and Nordegren had a good relationship, too.
In April 2020, the notoriously private Woods even shared a photo of himself,
Herman, and the kids, posting on Instagram,
"Masters Champions Dinner quarantine style. Nothing better than being with family."