What is the future of Tiger Woods? Health on the edge, but he won’t disappear from the PGA Tour

Although Tiger Woods hasn’t played his best golf in a long time, he is still a big draw and a hot commodity at every tournament he appears at. Having Tiger on the starting list also means almost guaranteed sold out tickets. Trouble is, we rarely see tournaments like this anymore. We can’t expect Tiger Woods to ever fully jump on the golfing merry-go-round again.

Let’s get used to the idea that seeing Tiger in action will be more of a holiday. After all, that is what the start of the current season, which the forty-six-year-old golf phenomenon will miss, suggests. He was originally scheduled to participate in the recent Hero World Challenge 2022, but a few days before the tournament he announced plantar fasciitis, which will prevent him from playing.

This week, he was scheduled to participate in an exhibition event, The Match, at the Pelican Golf Club in Florida, where he was expected to walk the fairways with his business colleague Rory McIlroy. Their opponents will be Justin Thomas and Jordan Spieth.

If nothing major happens, we may also see him on December 17-18 at the Ritz-Carlton Golf Club in Orlando as part of the traditional PNC Championship, where he will take to the course alongside his son Charlie.

But what’s next? Clearly, health issues right at the start of the season don’t bode well for an optimistic scenario. Many fans were secretly hoping that Tiger might be on the field more often this season. However, during a press conference at the Hero World Challenge, he admitted that these optimistic prospects were more of a utopia.

“The aim is to play only major championships and maybe one or two more. That’s all. Physically, that’s all I can do,” Golfweek quoted him as saying. “I told you earlier this year. There’s not much left at this stage,” he added on the subject of further prospects in his rich career.

At the same time, the winner of 15 majors said that he hoped he was destined to win another tournament:: “I hope I can remember how to do it,” he added with exaggeration.

Even last season, you could see how Tiger was struggling on the course. It was almost a miracle when, a little over a year after a tragic car accident where he miraculously escaped with a serious leg injury, he stood and walked the Augusta National course at the Spring Masters. Despite the great pain, he eventually made the cut and played through Sunday.

“He acts a little different in front of the camera. It’s like he doesn’t want to show how much it really hurts,” John Rahm said.

“When we finished the round, I saw him get up and move around the room when no one was looking. It makes a difference, especially after playing 18 holes and having your legs rest a little bit. That changes,” commented John Rahm on his last appearance at the Masters.

He didn’t even finish the next Major of the season, and was forced to withdraw from the PGA Championship after 72 holes due to severe pain. And if Woods withdraws due to pain, that has to be something. In his prime, he was able to win tournaments with a broken leg. Despite all the pain, he never gives up.

But it’s also true that at this stage, winning golf is no longer the center of the universe for him. He’s been undergoing long rehabilitation for the last few years. Not to forget his long-standing back problems, for which he has undergone dozens of operations.

More surgeries have not escaped him recently, as he admitted at a press conference. Although he really didn’t want to be specific, as evidenced by the translation of his brief communication with journalists.

Question
Tiger Woods:: No.
Q: Can you say when?
Tiger Woods:: In the past.
Question:: In the past?
Tiger Woods:: This year.
Thank you, Bones.
You’re welcome.

After all this golf legend has been through, it’s actually a miracle he’s still playing at all. That he’s still trying to make a comeback, despite the pain and suffering. But that speaks volumes about his unbridled love for the sport. But is that love stronger than his health?

“At the moment, the house of cards that is his health seems too fragile a subject to talk about over-optimism. At this point, to expect him to play all four majors next year is to overestimate him,” wrote golf.com editor Josh Sens.

Tiger’s future on the course seems to be in a rather large and opaque fog. Whether he plays competitive rounds or not, we will definitely continue to see him in the golf world. Woods is one of the main combatants against the competitive streak of LIV Golf. That may also be the reason why he probably won’t just withdraw.

His name has left an indelible legacy on the PGA Tour, as one of the few who can truly help his lifelong benefactor. Together with Rory McIlroy, they are working on an innovative venture that will move golf into indoor arenas in front of raucous audiences, and prime time at the same time.

Whatever the direction of the PGA Tour in the coming months, it will most certainly have Woods by its side. Saving the traditional American circuit is clearly one of his big priorities. Perhaps even bigger than the game itself on the course. Given his health, however, this is not surprising.

Source:: golf.cz, Golfweek, PGA Tour