Legendary golfer enjoys his return to action after competing in the PNC Championship with teenage son Charlie
Tiger Woods – who may or may not be ending his 19-year association with Nike, although the odds now seem that he will likely be wearing a new brand of clothing next year – will try to play one tournament a month next year, if his ongoing rehabilitation to ankle surgery allows him.
“I haven’t had the leg good enough where I’ve been able to compete and play a lot of rounds. I’ve had a lot of procedures over the years, and that’s just part of it,” acknowledged Woods after competing in the PNC Championship with teenage son Charlie.
He added: “I know if I can practice, I know I can still do it. I can still hit the golf ball. I can still chip. I can still putt. Granted, it’s also all about putting it all together for 72 holes. That’s the challenging part of it.”
Woods hopes to play in all four Majors next year – although his exemption into the US Open has expired, so he would require a special exemption from the USGA – along with The Players and a number of other selected tournaments. Woods only managed to play six events in 2023, and was twice forced to withdraw (from the Masters and the US PGA) due to injury.
Of getting back to play again and of his body’s recovery, he added: “I think that a lot of things are aching a lot more than my ankle, which is the way it goes. I’ll be able to walk and play. We’ve been working out hard, been able to recover. We’ve been training every day, which is great.
“It’s been nice to knock off a lot of the rust and some of the doubt that I’ve had because quite frankly I haven’t hit a shot that counted in a long time . . . having to post a score and hit shots on the right number, and hit shots with consequence, it’s been nice.”
