Nothing outside of the big championships was ever guaranteed to Tiger Woods when it comes to his schedule. And now, even this is true following the news that Woods recently performed a microdiscectomy procedure to relieve nerve pain in his lower back.
Apparently, Woods is already hitting balls after doing the procedure on December 23rd. Still, Woods has come out on the Open Insurance Farmers, as well as the Genesis Invitational, two tournaments he was expected to play.
At 45, Woods was already in a dubious position about having to deal with back stiffness that was inevitable as a result of his 2017 spinal fusion surgery. Now, the added wrinkles are recovering from the microdiscectomy procedure. which normally does not require an overnight stay, but clearly requires a recovery time.
We expected less before all this, and now it looks like this will be even more important as 2021 moves forward. With that in mind, here’s a look at Woods ’programming possibilities.
Bad Hill
The Invitational Arnold Palmer (March 4-7) would apparently be the first place to return, and it is only six weeks away that it would seem to be an extensive stretch. Woods has had many hits at Bay Hill, winning eight times, most recently in 2013. Since then, his best effort has been a fifth-place tie in 2018, when he briefly contested during the final round. However, the tournament has been lost for the past two years. In 2019 he complained of neck stiffness; last year he jumped for back problems. Having lost the last two, it’s easier to skip it again. And playing outside Bay Hill Bay is no bargain. It seems like a long shot.
Sawgrass
The Players Championship (March 11-14) has never been a particularly fantastic tournament for Woods, although he has won it twice. Still, Tiger doesn’t skip the PGA Tour signing event unless he’s physically incapable. Given that the subsequent procedure was on December 23, there is some hope.
National PGA
The Honda Classic (March 18-21) is just a few miles from Woods ’home and has played the event several times over the years. This would have been unavoidable if everything had remained normal, but now it is a different possibility. Eight weeks and three weeks before the Master’s. Having a home game can be exactly what works best. PGA National is a difficult place to go back to work, but Woods may have no choice. The following week’s match event is no guarantee.
Austin Country Club
The WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play Championship (March 25-28) is two weeks before the Masters, and Woods enjoys that time. You are guaranteed three rounds in return pool format and anything beyond that is a bonus. Two years ago, Woods tied for fifth place at Austin Country Club, losing in the quarterfinals. He won the Masters two weeks later. Here’s the problem: it may not be classified. Woods ranks 44th in the world and falls. Can you stay in the top 64 right now? Do you even want to risk the chance to play multiple games if it comes to the weekend? If not eligible, last week’s Honda makes more sense. Crazy Thought: Woods does not qualify and appears in the opposite event in the Dominican Republic.
Augusta National
The week of April 3 is already encircled. If Woods can’t return sooner, can he return to the Masters? It’s not an ideal place to come back, but he did it before: in 2010 and 2015, this last year after taking nine weeks off to work on his game. Woods hates missing the Masters. The fact that he had a problem and seemed to want to solve it as soon as possible suggests that he will do his best to be in Augusta.
Innisbrook
The March Valspar Championship move to three weeks after the Masters (April 29 and May 2) may help the Florida tournament land Woods. Three years ago, just in his fourth start after spine fusion surgery, he tied for second place, a shot after winner Paul Casey at Innisbrook’s Copperhead field. The course is not far from home and is very suitable for Woods. They also spend three weeks before the PGA Championship. The only question: would you rather play next week? If you couldn’t play in the Masters, this event would be a great place to come back, as it’s more than three months away.
Quail quail
The Wells Fargo Championship (May 6-10) looks like a proposal for Woods, who won the tournament in 2007 and finished fourth in 2009. Since then, he has played the event only four times, with two missed cuts and a 55th draw in 2018. Quail Hollow Golf Club has undergone several changes that may not fit Woods. I could push him away. Again, if you want to play two weeks before the PGA Championship, this would be the choice, that is, Valspar skips.
Kiawah Island
For the PGA Championship (May 13-17), it’s very unlikely we’ll see Woods doing what he did in 2019, which isn’t played before the tournament after the Masters. Last year, its only start before the PGA was the Memorial, its first tournament after the pandemic stopped. In 2012, Woods shared the 36-hole lead on Kiawah Island, South Carolina with Vijay Singh and Carl Pettersson, only to shoot 74-72 at the weekend and fall well off the pace. Rory McIlroy won the tournament by 8 shots; Woods finished tied for 11th, 11 times back.
Town of Muirfield
Two weeks after the PGA, two weeks before the US Open. The Jack Nicklaus Memorial Tournament (June 3-6) in Dublin, Ohio, is in the perfect spot. Except for something unexpected, it’s hard to see Tiger skip a tournament he has won five times.
Torrey Pines
The US Open returns to Torrey Pines in San Diego for the first time since Woods’ epic win over Rocco Mediate in 2008. This was his 14th major title and there has been an avalanche of things over the past 13 years . But Torrey should be more to Woods’ liking.
Real Sant Jordi
It’s hard to see Woods playing in the Open. He probably won’t play Travelers the week after the U.S. Open or John Deere the week before the Open. That just leaves the Detroit Rocket Mortgage Championship, a place he has never played. He has not competed in the Open at Royal St. for 18 years. George’s of Sandwich, England. He missed the 2011 tournament due to injury. He tied for fourth when Ben Curtis surprised the world in 2003. He came in just 2 behind Thomas Bjorn heading into the final round and lost a playoff by 2 strokes. (Woods, infamous, had a lost ball in the first hole of the tournament, his connection to the crude was not found in the allotted time; he made a triple bogey 7.)
TPC Southwind
Remember when Woods was the top candidate to play in the Olympics? A year ago, at that time, he was ranked sixth in the world, in the privileged position of being one of the top four Americans. He is now barely in the top 50, where he will have to be if he can even qualify for the WGC-FedEx St. Jude Invitational in Memphis. The WGC fits him perfectly (it’s a week after the men’s Olympic golf tournament), three weeks after the Open and two weeks before the FedEx Cup playoffs. The big questions: Will he be eligible? And where will it be in the FedEx rankings?
The FedEx Cup playoffs
Woods was unable to qualify for the Tour Championship in 2019 despite winning the Masters, nor was he able to do so last year despite a victory in the Zozo Championship. For the past three years, he has shown a penchant for playing them all if he is eligible.
This year, the Northern Trust (August 19-22) returns to Liberty National, where it retired after a round in 2019; the BMW Championship (August 26-29) goes to a new venue at Maryland’s Caves Valley Golf Club; and the Tour Championship (September 2-5) returns to East Lake, Atlanta, where Woods won in 2018, and has yet to return.
The verdict
It’s the same story: Woods ’fitness, ability to practice and compete will determine how much he plays in 2021. After losing two tournaments, he was expected to play and possibly more, it looks like Woods could play before the FedEx Cup . The playoffs are 10 tournaments. It’s hard to see him playing more than that. And it may even be one or two less. As always, he will focus on the big championships. From here, how he feels and his motivation to advance to the FedEx Cup playoffs will likely determine how much we see him.