Less than a week ago, Tiger Woods was forced to withdraw from the Farmers Insurance Open after only 11 holes due to an unspecified injury, although playing partner Billy Horschel mentioned that he believed Woods was having back spasms on the course. This naturally became the biggest discussion of the golf world, and the question everyone keeps is asking is “Is Tiger Woods near the end?”
It’s a valid question, considering that Woods has now dropped out of the world top 60 rankings for the first time since 1996, and he spent the vast majority of those nearly two decades as the sport’s top-ranked player. His health has been on the decline in recent years and he’s missed time with a variety of injuries — he’s only played a few competitive rounds now since coming off of back surgery. And because Woods was clearly in no shape to contend last week, what would the near future in particular hold for him as the season gets under way?
This evening, Tiger released a statement on his short-term plans, which include a short leave of absence:
The last two weeks have been very disappointing to me, especially Torrey, because I never want to withdraw. Unfortunately, lately injuries have made that happen too often.
This latest injury is not related to my previous surgery. I am having daily physical therapy and I am feeling better every day.
He continued:
Right now, I need a lot of work on my game, and to still spend time with the people that are important to me. My play, and scores, are not acceptable for tournament golf. Like I’ve said, I enter a tournament to compete at the highest level, and when I think I’m ready, I’ll be back. Next week I will practice at Medalist and at home getting ready for the rest of the year.
Don’t expect Tiger’s PGA absence to go on too long, though — he indicated that while he’s not ready to compete in tournaments at this moment, he’s not far off from returning, either:
I do, however, expect to be playing again very soon.
Best of luck to Tiger as he looks to regain his health and get back into true playing shape — the game just isn’t quite the same without him.
h/t Tiger Woods