Golf Back on the PGA Tour
“I’m rusty” – Woods struggles with his body during his comeback
As of: 9:32 a.m. | Reading time: 2 minutes
Tiger Woods has only played a few tournaments since his car accident in 2021
Quelle: picture alliance/dpa/AP/Ryan Kang
Tiger Woods is back on the PGA Tour. However, in his first start in 2024, the superstar is lagging behind. The 48-year-old golfer’s fire hasn’t gone out yet – but his body is causing problems.
Golf superstar Tiger Woods has to worry about making the cut at his first official PGA tournament in around ten months after back problems. The 48-year-old played a round of 72 on Thursday (local time) at the start of the Genesis Invitational in Pacific Palisades, California, where he is also hosting, and is tied for 49th place with one shot over par. The top 50 golfers qualify for the two rounds on the weekend.
“I had problems with the speed on the green. I knew I was going to be rusty,” Woods said. “My back cramped on the last few holes and then it just blocked.” On hole 18, the 15-time major winner even hit the trees.
After his injury-related retirement from the Masters in April last year and the subsequent operation on his right foot, Woods only made his comeback in December at his invitation tournament in the Bahamas.
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“It’s impossible to prepare for this,” the golfer said of his return to competition after the long break. “I rely so much on my experience and the fact that I’ve been doing this for a long time, but I still feel the adrenaline rush.”
After breaking his leg, Woods only played in selected tournaments
The $20 million event at the Riviera Country Club is now the first official PGA tournament for Woods since the 2023 Masters. After Thursday, the American Patrick Cantlay is in the lead with seven shots under par.
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The long-standing world number one broke his right leg several times in a serious car accident in February 2021. Since then, Woods has only competed in a few select tournaments. So far in his career he has won 15 major tournaments and was at the top of the world rankings for more than 13 years.