Tiger Woods questioned for giving Justin Thomas a tampon at the Genesis Invitational

The multi-million dollar offer that Tiger Woods rejected 0:57

(CNN) --

Tiger Woods handed Justin Thomas a tampon after he outdid his playmate in an apparent prank that some on social media say has sexist overtones.

Thomas immediately discarded the tampon before the two men laughed and hugged while teeing off the ninth hole at the Genesis Invitational on Thursday.

Woods' reasons for giving Thomas a tampon are unknown.

CNN reached out to Excel Sports Management, which represents both players, for comment but did not receive a response by press time.

See, it's kind of funny because feminine hygiene products are inherently emasculating, so when a man makes another man touch a tampon, he's saying, 'I'm a bigger and better man than you, because, DISGUSTING, I made you touch it! a wrapped Tampax!'” attorney Ann Olivarius tweeted.

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Tiger Woods handed Justin Thomas a tampon after getting past him on the ninth hole.

Credit: Cliff Hawkins/Getty Images

“If Tiger spent three months out of the year bleeding and dealing with period pain, she would make an entire documentary on how champions overcome insurmountable obstacles,” Alex McDaniel, managing editor of USA Today's For The Win, tweeted.

After sustaining serious leg injuries in a car accident two years ago, Woods has made sporadic competitive appearances as he struggles through a grueling recovery process.

Woods and Thomas had a laugh as they walked the ninth hole during the first round of The Genesis Invitational.

Credit: Cliff Hawkins/Getty Images

Playing at the Genesis Invitational this week marks his first official tournament start since The Open Championship in July of last year and his first appearance at a non-major PGA Tour event since the ZOZO Championship in October 2020.

He finished his first round with a 2-under par 69, birdied on his last three holes, to finish the day five shots behind tournament leaders Max Homa and Keith Mitchell.

The 47-year-old golfer played alongside Rory McIlroy and Thomas, and the trio of major winners began their second round at 10:24 a.m. ET on Friday.

"It was good to have this incredible couple, two great guys, two great friends," Woods said at a later news conference.

“It was a great round.

The ebb and flow of pushing each other forward, encouraging each other and telling stories.

Since I hadn't been here, I missed some of the stuff that happened on the Tour, which is fun."

Tiger Woods apologizes

After the second round on Friday at the Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades, California, Woods said he did not mean to offend anyone.

"It was supposed to be all fun and games and obviously it hasn't turned out that way," the golfer told reporters.

"If I offended anyone, that wasn't the case, it was just friends having fun. Like I said, if I offended anyone in any way, shape or form, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to be that way. It was just that we were joking around all the time." time and virally, I think it wasn't seen that way, but between us it was, it's different."

Woods, 47, is in danger of missing the tournament cut after finishing his second round one over par.

The Genesis Invitational runs through Sunday.

Tiger Woods