A month ago, Tiger Woods sat at the dais ahead of the Genesis Invitational and gave the golf world a tease — something to potentially look for on the horizon.
Woods, who underwent lumbar disc replacement surgery in October, which followed a surgery to repair a ruptured Achilles tendon in March, was asked if playing in the 2026 Masters was “off the table” for him as his continues to rehab.
“No,” Woods said slyly at Riviera Country Club. He later told CBS’s Jim Nantz and Trevor Immelman that there was a real chance he’d make his return at Augusta National. He said he’ll be at Augusta to open The Patch and enjoy Rory McIlroy’s Champions Dinner and hoped to tee it up a few days after that ceremonial meal.
But with the Masters now just 22 days away, Woods was asked for an update on his progress after Jupiter Links’ TGL victory on Tuesday. The Woods who teased his potential return four weeks ago was replaced by one offering a more realistic view of where he stands in his recovery at age 50 after seven back surgeries and several other procedures.
“I said I’ve been working on it,” Woods said. “Sometimes I have good days, sometimes I have bad days. Disc replacement is not a lot of fun. So Will Zalatoris went through it, he had two levels done, and it takes time. So as I said, I’ve had a lot of procedures prior to that, so the body doesn’t quite heal like it was when I was 24. Doesn’t quite bounce back. So I have good days when I can pretty much do anything, and other days where it’s hard to just move around.”
A month ago, Nantz and Immelman asked Woods if he would try to play a tournament before the Masters as preparation, should his body feel ready. At the time, Woods said he was uncertain if he’d tee it up in a PGA Tour Champions event or a regular PGA Tour event. He hoped it would be a realistic possibility, but the 50-year-old was going to leave that decision up to his body.
TGL presents Woods with a potential opportunity to test out the back without having to walk 18 holes. Woods, who has been attending every Jupiter match as the captain, was asked if he might tee it up in next week’s TGL Finals against Los Angeles Golf Club.
One might expect Woods to give a vague answer to at least draw more interest in the simulator league’s championship round. But the 15-time major winner said he planned to leave things up to Max Homa, Tom Kim, Akshay Bhatia and Kevin Kisner to bring home the SoFi Cup.
“I think that I have been trying to play each and every one of these matches,” Woods said. “I’ve been trying to come back. But it just hasn’t worked out that way. I’ve had a bad run of injuries last year. I think it’s been a year and a few days since I blew out my Achilles. And so then I’ve had two back operations. So it’s been a little rough go. But the guys here, this team, we have so much fun, I really don’t want to screw up the lineup, I just want these guys to keep playing.”
The Masters is three weeks away. We haven’t seen Woods play in a PGA Tour event since the 2024 Open Championship. Woods is the ultimate competitor. He’ll undoubtedly try to push his body to be able to return at Augusta National.
But with 22 days to go until the first tee balls are in the air at the Masters, Woods’ status remains murky, and he seemed to dampen the possibility of a Masters return on Tuesday.
