Lately, Tiger Woods and his ex-girlfriend Erica Herman have been in the spotlight. This month, Erica filed a lawsuit against the American professional golfer for tricking her out of their shared home.
So, who is Erica Herman? Read on to know everything about Erica Herman including her early life, her background, her relationship with the golfer Tiger Woods, and her latest lawsuit.
Erica Herman is a Florida native
While growing up, Erica Herman lived in the Sunshine State. As per the Palm Beach Post, she was raised in Palm Beach County. In the early 2000s, she went to Santaluces High School, where she was a member of the school’s cheerleading team.
Herman was in her home state for college as well. She attended both Palm Beach State College and the University of Central Florida. In May 2008, she graduated with a bachelor’s degree in legal studies.
Erica Herman previously worked in the restaurant industry
Herman bagged a degree in legal studies but spent most of her career in the restaurant industry. During her time at UCF in Orlando, she first worked as a bartender and then she was ultimately named VIP manager at the Blue Martini lounge.
As per the court records, in the year 2010, Erica wanted to open a string of nightclubs in Florida with two business partners and a local investor but it was an endeavor that didn’t work out.
Soon after, Herman became the general manager of Tiger Woods’ flagship restaurant The Woods Jupiter, which was opened at Florida’s Harbourside Place in August 2015. Her former restaurant employee Luke Copeland told Page Six, that it was there that Erica began working directly with Tiger Woods.
Tiger Woods and Erica Herman were together for 5 years
Tiger and Erica were first spotted out and about in public in September 2017. At that time, Herman attended the President’s Cup with Woods while wearing a “player spouse” credential, which is just for the spouses or the partners of the players and captains.
According to Golf.com, along with accompanying Woods on the course during the tournament, Erica was also seen at the opening with the U.S. team’s wives and girlfriends, ceremonies.
A month later, Tiger and Erica made their romance Instagram official. Then, Woods uploaded a picture of the two at Dodger Stadium for a World Series game. In the photo, the pair can be seen sporting matching Dodgers jerseys. However, the golfer didn’t tag his better half in the post.
During a 2018 interview with People magazine, a close pal of Tiger talked about the couple and said, “No one has signed any paperwork. It’s not like they’re pledging their lives to each other. But she’s really nice and Tiger likes her.”
A friend of Woods went on to say, “Tiger doesn’t like to be alone. But he doesn’t like to settle. Not anymore. So when he’s with someone, he really needs to be into her.” Later on, Erica moved into Tiger’s Jupiter, Florida mansion. In December 2021, a source close to the golfer told the media outlet, “They live together at his house now.”
Erica Herman was Tiger Woods’ biggest cheerleader
Yeah, you read that right. Erica cheered Woods on at his matches and supported his golf career. Since her first public appearance with the golfer at the 2017 President’s Cup, she became a regular on the golf course when Woods was competing.
In the year 2018, Tiger won the Tour Championship. It marked his first victory in the last 5 years and his 80th PGA title. At that time, Herman was waiting for him at the 18th hole to congratulate him and give him a celebratory hug and kiss. When Erica was seen wrapping her arms around Woods, he was heard saying, “Love you.”
The next year, when Woods won the Masters, Erica was the first one to congratulate him along with his kids and mother. During the same year, he led his team to a President’s Cup victory. Post the big win, he held back his tears as Herman ran to embrace him. The two of them shared a long hug and then walked arm-in-arm.
Herman stayed by Woods’ side through the good days and the bad days. She supported him during his tournaments all over the world. The pair shared a kiss after his 2018 PGA Championship. They were clicked by the paps while walking hand-in-hand at the opening ceremonies of the 2018 Ryder Cup in France.
Erica also supported Woods at the 2022 Masters which was his first tournament appearance since the February 2021 car crash that left him with several injuries. During an earlier interview with Golf.com, Erica talked about Woods’ Masters’ appearance and said, “It’s miraculous. It shouldn’t be happening.”
She went on to say, “I mean, nothing ever surprises me about him. 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.”
Erica Herman shared a good bond with Tiger’s ex-wife and his children
Before sparking a romance with Erica, Tiger was married to Elin Nordegren. The former couple tied the knot in the year 2004 and called it quits in 2010 after 6 years of marriage. The exes share two kids.
On the other hand, when we talk about Elin and Erica, the two of them didn’t have any bad blood between them. A close source told People magazine, “Elin has a friendly relationship with Erica.”
The source went on to say, “Tiger has come a long way and Elin acknowledges that. She is happy that he is dating Erica.” Apart from this, Herman also shared a good bond with Tiger’s ex-wife Elin and their two children.
Back in the day, the trio was often snapped together in the crowd at Woods’ tournaments. All of them even donned matching outfits at the 2017 Hero World Challenge in the Bahamas. “The kids like her,” the same source shared.
Tiger’s daughter Sam also shared the same sentiment when she introduced her father at his 2022 induction into the World Golf Hall of Fame. In her beautiful speech, she spoke about their strong bond as a family unit including Herman. She said, “Through thick and thin, you, Charlie, Erica, [grandmother Kultida Woods], and I will always be a team.”
Erica Herman helped Tiger Woods to recover from his February 2021 car crash
For those of you who are unaware, let us share with you, in February 2021, Tiger was involved in a car crash that took place in Los Angeles. He sustained multiple injuries after his car struck a center divider and got in a rollover accident.
According to his agent Mark Steinberg, Woods suffered many injuries including fractures to his right tibia and fibula bones and additional injuries in his foot and ankle. After the car accident, the golfer wasn’t sure if he will be able to walk again or lose his right leg and let alone golf.
But Erica who was photographed by the paps at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center the day following his accident played a big role in helping him recover from his car crash. In an interview with Golf Digest, he raved over Herman.
Tiger told the media outlet, “I wanted to test and see if I still had my hands. So even in the hospital, I would have [girlfriend Erica Herman] and [friend] Rob [McNamara] throw me something.”
Woods referred to the months of rehab as “more painful than anything I have ever experienced.” In December 2021, he returned to his first love: golf at the PNC Championship with his son. Erica, his ex-wife Nordegren and his daughter were seen cheering him on from the sidelines.
Erica Herman filed a lawsuit against Tiger Woods in March 2023
Recently, Erica filed a lawsuit against her ex-boyfriend Tiger Woods for tricking her out of their Florida mansion. In a separate lawsuit, she has asked the court to nullify the non-disclosure agreement (NDA) that the pair signed at the start of their relationship in the year 2017 owing to sexual assault.
Herman has sued the golfer for $30 million. In her filing, she mentioned that she was away on vacation when the Florida mansion was taken from her. In addition to this, she also claimed that Tiger sexually assaulted her, so the 2017 NDA signed by her should be nullified.
The filing reads, “Because of the aggressive use of the Woods NDA against her by the Defendant and the trust under his control, the Plaintiff is unsure whether she may disclose, among other things, facts giving rise to various legal claims she believes she has.”
Tiger has denied the allegations pressed against him. In the documents, he said, “Ms. Herman’s position is utterly meritless. It is a transparent abuse of the judicial process that undermines the purpose of the federal statute and those whom the statute seeks to protect.”
Do you think Tiger Woods and Erica Herman were not a match made in heaven? Kindly let us know your thoughts in the comments section below. Don’t forget to stay tuned with us for the latest updates from the world of showbiz.
