Tiger Woods will make his long-awaited return to the PGA Tour seven months after withdrawing from this year’s Masters Tournament with an ankle injury in April.
Tiger Woods is poised to make his return to the PGA Tour this month, despite being told by former Ryder Cup rival Collin Montgomerie that he missed the perfect chance to retire from professional golf at the 2022 Open Championship.
Woods has not featured competitively since this year’s Masters Tournament in April, where he was forced to withdraw from the event in the third round due to an ankle problem. Seven months on though, the 15-time major champion is ready to again at the upcoming Hero World Challenge.
Since suffering permanently damaging injuries to his right leg in a car accident in Los Angeles in February 2021, Woods’ career has been on and off in recent years.
The 47-year-old has only participated in five competitive events since the accident, and he was forced to withdraw from two of them midway because of his health problems. Woods, who has won two Claret Jugs at St Andrews, made an emotional comeback to the course last summer for the 150th Open, despite his ongoing battle with injury.
Woods’ week was brief despite the fanciful tale, as he failed to make the 36-hole cut in Scotland. The St. Andrews crowd welcomed the American hero as he crossed the Swilcan Bridge and up the renowned 18th hole, even though he was struggling with form.
The three-time Open champion was moved to tears by the reception, and veteran Montgomerie feels that Woods ought to have taken advantage of the occasion to announce his retirement from the game. Last December, Montgomerie stated on The Bunkered Podcast, “That was the time.”
“When you start waving from that bridge, everyone asks, ‘So, is that it?'” Indeed, it is. That would have been an amazing course of action. You can’t beat that walk. The stands were packed, he was the focus of attention from TV cameras across the globe, and he was ascending there by himself. It was evident that he was crying.
I personally completed it. There is nothing like that walk when the stands are full. That is a very special arena, I assure you. This is a theater. At that point, Tiger ought to have said, “All right, I’m out.” Despite the allegations, Woods continues to put on a show. The 82-time winner of the PGA Tour splits his hosting responsibilities in the Bahamas with competing.
After the 2019 Masters champion was repeatedly spotted returning to the golf course, rumors about his comeback began to circulate in recent weeks. Last week, Woods gave an update on his fitness, saying that although his ankle issue had healed, there were still problems in other areas.
“My ankle feels good,” Woods affirmed. “I haven’t had any problems at all where they fused my ankle. That hurt has totally disappeared. The other areas have received compensation. But my problems began and continue to be in the surrounding areas.”
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