Weird Things About Tiger Woods And Elin Nordegren's Relationship Everyone Ignored

The main reason Tiger Woods and Elin Nordegren split is well-documented. Woods' multiple affairs were exposed in 2009, and the once-happy couple ended their marriage following a public apology from the sportsman. "I want to say to each of you simply and directly: I am deeply sorry for my irresponsible, selfish behavior," he said during a 2010 press conference. He continued, speaking on the state of his relationship with his then-wife, "My real apology to her will not come in the form of words. It will come from my behavior over time. We have a lot to discuss. However, what we say to each other will remain between the two of us."

But Woods' various infidelities weren't the only issue in his relationship with Nordegren. Things got weird in 2001 when Woods' dad publicly advised his son not to get married before 30. The pro-golfer was 25 at the time and met Nordegren that same year. "I don't see Tiger marrying before 30, if then, because he has a lot to accomplish in the game of golf. And let's face it, a wife can sometimes be a deterrent to a good game of golf," Earl Woods told TV Guide (via South Coast Today). "The level he's at, the finite little problems like that would destroy him." The golf superstar didn't listen to his dad, though. He proposed to Nordegren in 2003, and they married in Barbados the following year. But we've also noticed a few other oddities in this now-defunct romance that everyone ignored at the time.

When Elin Nordegren first met Tiger Woods, she was in a relationship with someone else and had no interest in the pro golfer. Nordegren's friend Mia Parnevik, wife to fellow pro-golfer Jesper Parnevik, admitted in a 2002 interview that Woods was aware Nordegren wasn't crushing on him — but he didn't seem to care. "There was a big line of single golfers wanting to meet her. They were gaga over her," Parenevik said (via Newsner).

Author James Patterson told a similar story in his tell-all book "Tiger, Tiger: His Life, As It's Never Been Told Before." He claimed Nordegren had a boyfriend back home (she hailed from Sweden) and was turned off by Woods in the early days. He even wrote the A-list golfer got someone else to ask Nordegren on a date on his behalf, which seriously didn't impress her. "[She found it] weird and pathetic," Patterson shared (via The Sun), also purporting the sportsman wasn't her usual type. An unnamed friend doubled down on Nordegren's response to Woods' advances to Daily Mail. "Elin's reaction was: 'What the hell was that?'" her friend said. They went on to claim that Nordegren declined Woods' first invitation to a date.

Another odd thing about Tiger Woods and Elin Nordegren's relationship? She hated fame and had no interest in being in the spotlight, but still married one of the most famous people in the world. "One of the reasons she didn't date him right away was because she did not want to be just a celebrity girlfriend," photographer Bingo Rimer recalled to Daily Mail. He also told Vanity Fair that Nordegren claimed to have no interest in Woods, but he continued to pursue her. "And she was 'No, no, no. You're famous. You're going to be trouble,'" Rimer recalled. "She told me a million times, 'I feel so stressed out about the whole celebrity thing, the media focus.'"

Nordegren also admitted to People post-divorce that she was no fan of Woods' high-profile life during their six-year marriage. "I wasn't interested at first, ironically. I had my opinions about celebrities," she said. "The hardest thing was being in the public eye. I am by nature a pretty shy and private person," she added. Though Woods has admitted he doesn't gel with fame either ("I don't like it, I never liked it," he told CNN in 2019), his massive career meant global attention came with the territory, and that may have caused tension for the former couple.

Not only was Elin Nordegren not into Tiger Woods' A-list status, they seemingly had very different attitudes toward spending too. "You'd expect someone of Elin's position to have a really swanky car, but she is not like that. She's very practical and not materialistic," an unnamed friend told Daily Mail. "Elin's an outdoorsy sort of girl. She's happiest playing soccer on the back lawn," they added. As for Woods? He seemed more comfortable making his way through the $800 million Celebrity Net Worth claims he amassed. Woods has lived an incredibly lavish lifestyle, including spending millions on his yacht, a private jet, and various homes.

But, on the flip side, the Swedish beauty shared a refreshing take on money with People after splitting with her ex. She made it clear she preferred to use her money to spend time with her loved ones. "Money doesn't make you happy, but I have to be honest: It is making some things easier," she said. "I have the opportunity to be with my children as much I want, and I am able to travel to see my family and also have them come here as often as I like." Though there's nothing wrong with the golfer spending the cash he earned and Nordegren being more frugal, their differing takes on finances are strange as it suggests they had fundamental differences from the beginning.

It's totally normal to be nervous on your wedding day. In fact, pre-wedding anxiety is surprisingly common and can sometimes be healthy, as it shows how much a person cares about the big step they're about to take. Tiger Woods, though? He reportedly wasn't feeling the pressure before he tied the knot with Elin Nordegren in 2004. "He didn't act like he was going to get married. He was very relaxed, like this was any other day for him," a source told People. That was despite the intense media attention and the lavish event being attended by his friends and family, as well as big stars like Michael Jordan and Oprah Winfrey.

What makes Woods calm and collected behavior on the day weird is he's openly admitted he gets nervous before playing golf, something he does almost every day. "I'm nervous from the very first shot. I'm nervous throughout the entire day," he admitted to Golf TV in 2019, decades into his career. So why wasn't he more jittery before committing his life to someone else?

Sometimes, staying friends with an ex can strengthen your next relationship, but being so close to a former partner you're giving them financial support when children aren't involved is a little weird. So, understandably, Elin Nordegren reportedly wasn't too happy about Tiger Woods' apparent close relationship with his ex-girlfriend, Joanna Jagoda, who he split with in 2001, shortly before he and the native Swede started dating.

Reportedly, Woods paid for Jagoda's home and funded her law school studies following their split, and Nordegren saw red when she found out. Woods' then-future wife was supposedly so upset she told him he needed to cut ties with Jagoda once and for all, or she'd break up with him. The star reportedly complied, and the rest is history (albeit a history full of weird quirks).