Tiger Woods’ recovery ‘not as fast as I’d like’, no timetable for return
Sign up now: Get the biggest sports news in your inbox
Tiger Woods, who will turn 50 later this month, underwent disc replacement surgery in October.
PHOTO: REUTERS
Follow topic:
- Tiger Woods is recovering from disc replacement surgery in October, his seventh back operation, and has been cleared for chipping and putting.
- Woods stated his recovery is "not as fast as I'd like it to be" and he is unsure when he can return to competitive golf.
- Despite setbacks, Woods is determined to "come back to just playing golf again," but a 2026 tournament schedule is undetermined.
AI generated
MIAMI – Tiger Woods said on Dec 2 that recovery from his latest back surgery has not gone as quickly as he wanted, stating it was too soon to set a target date for a return to action.
The 15-time Major champion, who will turn 50 on Dec 30, underwent disc replacement surgery
Speaking at his Hero World Challenge tournament in the Bahamas on Dec 2, the former world No. 1 revealed that he had recently been cleared to try chipping and putting, but had no idea of when he may return to competitive action.
“It’s not as fast as I’d like it to be,” Woods replied when asked about the pace of his recovery from what was the seventh operation on his back.
“It was a good thing to do, something I needed to have happen, and it just takes time and dedication to the rehab process.”
Asked if he had an idea of his likely tournament schedule in 2026, Woods said he was still “a ways” from determining a timetable for his return.
“I’m just looking forward to... just let me get back to playing again, let me do that and then I’ll kind of figure out what the schedule is going to be,” Woods said.
“I’m a ways away from that part of it and that type of decision, that type of commitment level.
“Unfortunately, I’ve been through this rehab process before, it’s just step by step. Once I get a feel for practising, exploding, playing, the recovery process, then I can assess where I’m going to play and how much I’ll play.”
Woods suffered severe leg injuries in a 2021 car crash but returned at the 2022 Masters and finished 47th.
The veteran superstar had a back operation in September 2024 and was rehabilitating from that setback when he announced in March that he had suffered a ruptured Achilles tendon.
Woods said while he had started chipping and putting, he was bracing himself for a lengthy rehabilitation.
“I just got cleared last week to chip and putt so it’s good,” he said. “It’s been slow. Not able to do much on a disc replacement to let it set. Can’t really do much.
“Now we got the OK to start cranking up a little bit in the gym, started strengthening and started doing a little bit more of the rotational component that I haven’t been able to do. Just letting the disc kind of set.”
Asked if he was targeting a possible return at the Genesis Invitational in Los Angeles in February, Woods added: “As I said, I don’t know... A disc replacement takes time. It’s longer – it’s not as long as a fusion, thank God, but it’s going to take time.”
Woods was adamant, though, that he remains determined to return to the golf course.
“I’d like to come back to just playing golf again,” he said.
“I haven’t played golf in a long time. It’s been a tough year.
“I’ve had a lot of things happen on and off the golf course that’s been tough. And so my passion (is) to just play, I haven’t done that in a long time. Just play.” AFP
