Tiger Woods wanted to play his event this week in the Bahamas, the Hero World Challenge.
But after his latest back surgery Sep. 13, his body wasn’t quite ready.
“I’m not tournament sharp yet,” Woods said Tuesday at his pre-tournament news conference. “I’m still not there. These are 20 of the best players in the world and I’m not sharp enough to compete against them at this level. So when I’m ready to compete and play at this level, then I will.”
If that sounds regurgitated, it’s because it is.
Woods, who turns 49 later this month, has said constantly he won’t tee it up unless he feels like he can compete with the best players in the world. He wants his body and game to be in a place where he feels like he can win, and he won’t play if he doesn’t believe he can achieve those heights.
Less than three months after another surgery, Woods isn’t quite there yet.
“I didn’t think my back was going to go like it did this year. It was quite painful throughout the end of the year and hence I had another procedure done to it to alleviate the pain I had going down my leg.”
“I’m not tournament-sharp yet.”
Tiger Woods begins his remarks at the Hero World Challenge with an update on his health, and why he decided not to play this week. pic.twitter.com/bN3B8xPJlq
— Golf Today (@GCGolfToday) December 3, 2024
Last year at the Hero World Challenge, Woods said he would love to play once a month in 2024. He ended up playing five times in six months before his latest procedure.
What’s the plan look like for 2025?
“Whether my commitment going forward is once a month, yeah, I could say that all over again, but I truly don’t know,” Woods said. “I’m just trying to rehab and still get stronger and better and feel better, really give myself the best chance I can going into next year.
“This year was kind of — I had to toss it away and I wasn’t as sharp as I needed to be and I didn’t play as much as I needed to going into the major championships and I didn’t play well at them. Hopefully, next year will be better, I’ll be physically stronger and better. I know the procedure helped, and hopefully that I can then build upon that.”