Tiger Woods has confirmed that he will compete in his first round of competition in seven months at next week’s Genesis Invitational in Los Angeles.
The 15-time major winner hasn’t played a tour-level shot since missing his cut at The Open in July, but he tweeted on Friday, “I’m ready to play an ACTUAL PGA Tour event next week.”
Woods only managed nine laps in 2022 due to complications related to the limb-threatening injuries he sustained in his car accident the previous year.
Most recently, this meant the 47-year-old had to withdraw from the Hero World Challenge in December due to plantar fasciitis in his right foot. However, later in the month he played with his son Charlie in the two-round PNC Championship, where players are allowed to use strollers.
“Plantar fasciitis isn’t fun and now I can really recover and heal and progress because there are so many good things I’ve been able to do physically to be able to hit the golf ball and practice and do everything while still standing,” he said Woods on December 18 on the issue.
Tiger Woods has confirmed that he will be playing next week’s Genesis Invitational at the Riviera
It will be the 15-time Major winner’s first event since the British Open in St Andrews last July
“But I haven’t been able to get from point A to point B and will obviously work on it.”
Using a buggy was a crucial part of Wood’s involvement in the latter, with the American previously stating he retains the ability to swing a racquet with some of his old mastery but is currently unable to take the rigors of a long one time to endure.
The Genesis Invitational, which begins next Thursday at Riviera Country Club, will provide an indication of what form Woods is in a few months after the Masters.
While Woods has been cryptic about his schedule, he said in late 2022 that his future plans would be limited to the four majors and maybe “one or two” others due to his health.
It will clearly be a huge boost for the PGA Tour that he has declared his intention to return to one of their non-major events for the first time since the Zozo Championship in October 2020.
Woods is the tournament host of the long-running event at Riviera Country Club, where he made his PGA Tour debut in 1992 as a 16-year-old amateur but never won it as a pro.
The tournament marks Woods’ first non-major start on the PGA Tour since the 2020 Zozo Championship.
Woods had earned his 82nd Tour victory by tying Sam Snead for the record at the same event the previous year.
Last year, Woods finished 47th at Augusta, playing through the pain threshold after a serious car accident in February 2021 that still impairs his ability to walk.
The 47-year-old served at the PNC Championships with his son Charlie in December
Woods’ last start on the PGA Tour was the 2020 Zozo Championship, which he won in 2019
Along with his wonderful return to Augusta, Woods made the cut at the PGA Championship but was eliminated in the third round. He missed the cut at the British Open, his last event at St Andrews.
His last finish on the Riviera was a solo 68 in 2020.
The Genesis Invitational is the tour’s third designated event this year, following the Sentry Tournament of Champions and this week’s World Championship Phoenix Open.
The designated events were part of a series of changes to the PGA Tour in response to the LIV Golf threat.
The prize money is $20 million, with $3.6 million going to the winner – part of the fight against the mega-cash prizes and deals of Saudi Arabia-funded breakaways.
The golf icon could use the Genesis invite as an early warm-up for Augusta
All but two eligible players from the World Top 50 – Aaron Wise and Si Woo Kim – are listed in the field, including World No. 1 Rory McIlroy and No. 2 Scottie Scheffler.
The rest of the top ten will also serve, with the exception of LIV defector Cam Smith, who is ineligible after his tour membership was suspended to join the Rebel series.
Assuming his goal is to play The Masters again this year, Woods will certainly be looking to return to competitive play before then.
The Players Championship, which he has won twice, could provide the perfect opportunity as the event is four weeks away and just three weeks before the first major of the year.