ORLANDO, Fla. – On Sunday, one of the most eventful years of Tiger Woods’ career came to a competitive end, and that’s saying something.
The 15-time major champion has broken records over the decades, but his on-course accomplishments have often been matched by his off-course problems. But many of those hot years have struggled to keep up with Tiger’s 2023.
The year started off as expected with his first start at the Genesis Invitational. Since his tragic car accident in early 2021, Tiger has competed in just six tournaments, including last month’s Hero World Challenge, an unofficial tournament, but when he arrived on the Riviera in February, he was in the medical corner. I had the feeling that I had turned a corner.
“I’m excited to be able to compete and play and play right here on the Riviera, where basically it all started,” he said at Genesis.th.
But that optimism was short-lived, as the Masters bowed out with a score of 74-73, setting up a very long Sunday that continued into the third round. Two weeks later, he was on the surgeon’s table again, undergoing surgery on his right ankle to address post-traumatic arthritis caused by injuries sustained in a car accident in 2021.
“There was no schedule for this,” his manager Mark Steinberg told The Associated Press at the time.
This was a blow to Tiger and the game, but not entirely unexpected given the severity of the injury and his medical history. Even at age 47, a season spent rehabbing another injury wasn’t the worst that could have happened.
But like everything else in the professional game, the PGA Tour announced on June 6 that it had reached a framework agreement with Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund, an agreement that would bundle the tour, European circuits and LIV Golf. Everything changed in the day. A single commercial organization.
On August 1, the Tour announced that Tiger had been appointed as the sixth player director on its policy committee. The importance of Tiger’s arrival sends a clear message that tour leaders are accountable and that players will never again be left in the dark as they were during the Framework Agreement. Ta.
Woods’ game is in ‘pretty good shape’ after PNC
Tiger Woods talks about his feelings after playing in the PNC Championship, and Golf Central covers his game.
“My reaction was surprising because I think a lot of players were surprised.” [the framework agreement]” he said at the Hero World Challenge last month. “It was just thrown out there really quickly with no input or information about it.
“We were very surprised by what that process actually was. We are very unhappy with what happened and have taken future steps to ensure player participation. We’re not left out of the process as much as we were. Part of that process was having me on the board and accepting the position.”
It cannot be overstated how involved the policy committee, and in particular the athlete directors, have been in ongoing negotiations with both the Saudi Public Investment Fund and additional private equity as the circuit moves to a for-profit model, but last weekend is one example. This process is labor intensive.
On December 7, Jon Rahm announced his joining LIV Golf, ending weeks of speculation and sending a clear message to the tour that the PIF and breakaway leagues are here to stay. Two days later, the Policy Board held an emergency meeting, and the following day, Sunday, the board unanimously agreed to narrow the search for a private equity partner to one potential bidder, an investment group called Strategic Sports Group, led by Fenway Sports. announced that they had agreed.
This year has been such a year for professional golf, and for Tiger, who has never served on a policy committee before, and during those meetings and briefings, he announced his return to action. I kept trying.
At the Hero World Challenge, Tiger explained that there was some uncertainty as he moved towards his return.
“I don’t have any of the ankle pain that I was having because of the hardware on my foot. It’s all gone,” he said. “Other parts of my body hurt, my knees, my back. The power has to go somewhere. Just like when I had my back fused, the power has to go somewhere. So that’s it. It’s higher up the chain. Like I said, I’m just as curious as you are to know what’s going to happen. I haven’t done this in a while.”
18th-Finishing in the 20-man field was encouraging, at least from a physical fitness standpoint. For the first time since February, he was able to sail through 72 holes without a setback, and he said his recovery was better than he expected.
This week’s PNC Championship didn’t present nearly the same challenge as Tiger and his son Charlie competed in a 36-hole scramble event in a golf cart on the first day. But he was equally pleased with his body’s response to the cold and humidity. The conditions were similar to how he played.
“My legs weren’t strong enough to play a lot of rounds. I’ve had a lot of surgeries over the years and that’s just part of it,” Tiger said, tied for fifth with Charlie. He spoke on Sunday. “I know if I can practice, I can still do it. I can still hit the golf ball. I can still chip. I can still putt. It’s certainly a summation of all 72 holes. That’s the difficult part of the work.”
2 weeks until 48 years oldth Now that he has a birthday on his way, it seems unlikely that things will slow down any further for the rest of the year for Tiger.
Following unsubstantiated reports on social media that Tiger’s contract with Nike is set to expire at the end of 2023, Tiger was asked to clarify the matter at the Ritz-Carlton Golf Club on Saturday, and he gave an aloof response. Did. “I still wear their products,” he said.
The deadline for the tour to sign a contract with PIF is Dec. 31, but multiple sources say the deadline could be pushed back to next year. There are sure to be more meetings, more memos and more mergers, which means the most eventful year of Tiger’s career isn’t over yet.