Tiger Woods, Other Black Athletes With Weird But Successful Sports Rituals

Patrick Mahomes. You’re a great player. Easily the best quarterback in the league (still). But the world did not need to know that you wear the same pair of red underwear every game on Sunday. He said, “As long as we’re winning, I’ll keep the superstition going.”

Kevin Garnett is one of the most passionate, competitive, and high-energy players in NBA history. As a way to represent his intensity, he would hit his head up against the basket before every game.

This pre-game ritual is just iconic. Every NBA player puts chalk on their hands before the game so they can have a better grip on the ball. But LeBron’s way of putting it on is just angelic at this point.

Are we surprised that LeBron took some notes from Michael Jordan? Of course not. Michael Jordan would clap his hands full of chalk at the scorer’s table before every game. He would also wear his North Carolina shorts under his Bulls shorts every game.

During his rookie year in the NBA, Steve Smith’s mother died of cancer. To honor her, he tattooed her name on his arm. Before a free throw, he would touch the tattoo to remember her.

I’m glad there is no video of this ritual. Before every game, former NFL player John Henderson would have a team trainer slap him in the face.

She’s arguably the greatest athlete in American history. Apparently, her socks are the reason for it. During tournaments, she would continue to wear the same socks in a tournament if she kept winning. A bit gross, but a lot better than wearing the same underwear.

Tiger Woods’ red polos are iconic at this point. It’s his uniform. Wonder why he wears it? It started while he was an amateur golf star at Stanford University. He would wear red on the final day of events and since that was the school colors, it worked out and he stuck with it.

This is another weird one. The night before a game, Jason Terry would wear the shorts of the team he was playing to sleep. It started in 1997 and he did until his last year in 2018.

The NFL Hall of Famer has something in common with Serena Williams, he has a weird ritual involving socks. While sitting in his locker before games, he would talk to his socks to get him going. It must’ve worked considering he has the record for most sacks in an NFL season.

We all know that Marshawn Lynch loved to eat Skittles before and during games. But did you know that he also had to take a shot of Hennessey?

Just observe the above video, and you can see how seriously Brian Dawkins (aka Weapon X), took his pregame ritual.

The most iconic dance in NFL history. Before every game, when Ray Lewis would be introduced to the Ravens crowd, he would do his trademark “Squirrel” dance.

Keeping it strictly to sports, Karl Malone would oddly talk to himself while at the free-throw line. He later revealed that he did it to remind himself of what he needed to do at the line.

We all know D-Wade was famous for wearing the Number Three throughout his career. But he also had to chew three pieces of gum, drink three bottles of Gatorade, and do three pullups on the rim before every game.

Deandre Hopkins’ in-game ritual is much more heartwarming compared to others on this list. The three-time All-Pro gives a football to his mom in the crowd every time he scores a touchdown.

It’s honestly hard to believe this considering he was the most clutch player on those early 2000s Sacramento Kings teams. But whenever he would go to the bench during his, he would bite and trim his nails so he wouldn’t get to anxious.

I guess this ritual worked out, but it doesn’t sound too healthy. Before every game, he used to drink two liters of Mountain Dew before and during games. He would also chew straws during games, but they had to be from McDonald’s.