Olympian Lindsey Vonn and golfer Tiger Woods have been rumored to be dating for some time and although the relationship hasn't officially been confirmed, sources say that the couple has started getting serious.
According to Us Weekly, sources close to the two said that the couple has been spending as much time as they can together and are getting more serious.
Says one close source:
"Tiger and Lindsey have been friends for a while, and nothing started out romantically at all. But they really have a lot in common and got closer and closer."
"He still refers to her as 'my very good friend,' but he's been spending more and more time thinking about her, and talking to her, and talking about her."
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Rumors started to fly more about the two after Woods lent Vonn his private jet last week after she crashed and suffered a serious knee injury while competing at the World Championships in Austria. Reports said that the two met last year and started to spend more time together soon after.
A source said: "Their friendship slowly turned into a relationship."
Vonn recently finished her divorce from her husband Thomas Vonn, while Woods memorably divorced from his wife Elin Nordegren after his sex scandal was uncovered. Vonn will be out of action for a while and will be able to spend a lot of time with Woods after tearing ligaments in her knee and fracturing her shin.
Vonn's representatives said last month that Vonn was focused on competition when asked about the relationship and the skier was on a hot streak before her crash, winning two straight events. Vonn is the most high-profile relationship Woods has had since his divorce, in which he paid a $110 million settlement.
"She's not freaked out by his past," said the source. "That really appeals to him. He really does deserve to be happy. He has been flogging himself for three years, and it's good to see him moving forward."
The couple reportedly took a vacation together last year and Vonn gave skiing lessons to Woods' children, daughter Sam, 5, and son Charlie, 4., according to Us Weekly.
According to the Associated Press, Vonn injured herself after losing balance on her right leg after landing from a jump. Her ski came off her foot right away and forced Vonn to slide off the course and crash into a gate. She received medical attention on the slope for over 10 minutes and was brought to the hospital.
The 28-year-old Vonn is a four-time World Cup champion and three-time Olympian and is considered to be the best skier competing in the sport. She was once married to Thomas Vonn in September 2007, but the two divorced.
According to ESPN.com, the surgeon who operated on Vonn said he was "optimistic for a full recovery" and the torn ligaments she suffered last week at the world championships will not stop her from competing. Dr. Bill Sterett, a physician for the U.S. Ski Team, performed the procedure on Vonn's knee and Saud in a release that the surgery was a success and Vonn was recovering.
"The overall success rate for ACL/MCL surgery is very good. Modern surgical techniques combined with aggressive rehabilitation will help Lindsey make a full recovery," said Sterett, who's also a surgeon at Vail-Summit Orthopaedics. "She will do everything in her power to return as quickly as possible to competitive skiing."
Vonn crashed after her ski became tangled in the slope and tore her anterior cruciate and medial collateral ligaments while also breaking a bone in her lower leg. The four-time overall World Cup champion was hurt during the super-G in Schladming, Austria and no date was announced for her return. The doctors said it could be eight months.