Tiger Woods has hit the first ever golf ball from Europe into Asia with a spectacular drive along the Bosphorus Bridge in Turkey.

The world number one golfer had to negotiate strong crosswinds and moving traffic in the opposite lane, but he maintained his composure to hit several solid shots across the two continents.

However many Istanbul locals were far from impressed as the publicity stunt, ahead of Woods’ £1.5million ($2.4million) appearance at the Turkish Airlines World Golf Final at Antalya this week, caused traffic chaos.

Fore: U.S. golfer Tiger Woods prepares to slam a golf ball from Europe into Asia along the Bosphorus Bridge in Istanbul

Tiger Woods hits drive: Europe to Asia on Bosphorus Bridge (archive)Loaded: 0%Progress: 0%0:00PreviousPlaySkipMuteCurrent Time0:00/Duration Time0:55FullscreenNeed Text

Authorities were forced to halt traffic on one side of the bridge at one of the busiest times of day, causing horrific tailbacks and delays.

The Bosphorus Bridge, which stretches for one-and-a half kilometres, is one of two suspension bridges currently spanning the Bosphorus Strait in Istanbul.

It was opened in 1973 and currently around 180,000 vehicles pass over it in both directions every day.

Par for the course: Woods battled strong crosswinds to hit several shots across the bridge from Europe into Asia

King of the swingers: Woods has regained his position as the world’s highest paid sports star earning an estimated £49 million last year

Drive: Traffic was closed off along one side of the bridge while the world number one golfer made the spectacular shot

The Bosphorus Bridge stretches for over a kilometre-and-a-half across the Bosphorus Strait in Istanbul

Bogey man: Woods’s antics infuriated many Istanbul locals as one side of the bridge had to be closed to traffic at one of the busiest times of the day causing huge tailbacks

Last month Turkey opened a tunnel under the Bosphorus – the deepest submerged railway tunnel of its type in the world.

The opening of the major engineering project marked the completion of a plan initially proposed by an Ottoman sultan about 150 years ago.

THE MIGHTY BOSPHORUS

• The Bosphorus or Bosporus is also known as the Istabul Strait, which forms part of the boundary between Europe and Asia.
• It is the world’s narrowest strait used for international navigation and connects the Black Sea with the Sea of Marmara.
• The strait is 31 km (17 nautical miles) long.
• The Bosphorus has an average depth of 65 metres but is just 13 meres deep at its shallowest point.
• The shores of the strait are heavily populated; straddled by the city of Istanbul with a population of over 12 million.
• The name is derived from Greek and means ‘passing of a river’ and refers to an ancient myth, when Io was transformed into a cow and was condemned to wander the Earth until she crossed the Bosphorus where she met Promethius.

The tunnel is just one of Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan’s large-scale plans.

Others include a separate tunnel being built under the Bosphorus for cars, a third bridge over the strait, the world’s biggest airport and a massive canal that would bypass the Bosphorus.

Woods is one of eight top players, including Lee Westwood, Rory McIlroy and Justin Rose, to be asked to perform at the the event.

The golfer is ranked number one in the world despite not having won a major tournament since the U.S. Open in 2008.

He has bounced back from an embarrassing sex scandal and divorce in 2009, to this year regain his position as the world’s highest paid sports star earning an estimated £49million ($79 million).

He will reportedly earn around £5million ($8million) for the last month alone after appearing at the Abu Dhabi Championship and in a one-off exhibition match with Rory McIlroy in China.

And despite being dropped earlier this year as the face of the franchise, Woods continues to receive payouts from the PGA tour video games.

He is also sponsered by Rolex, Upper Deck, TLC Eye Centers, NetJets, Japan’s Kowa and sports nutrition firm Fuse Science.

However sports equipment manufacturer Nike remains his most lucrative sponsor paying him an estimated £12.5million a year.