Tiger Woods’ comeback to golf is on hold, again
Last week Tiger Woods announced he would be returning to the PGA Tour. Now he has had second thoughts.
There was a spike in the excitement levels around the golf world late last week with the news that Tiger Woods would be play in the PGA Tour 2016-17 season opener, the Safeway Open in California.
But by Monday this week, those thinking the news was too good to be true were proven correct with Woods having a change of heart over the weekend and withdrawing from the tournament.
Woods conveyed the bad news via a statement on his website:
After a lot of soul searching and honest reflection, I know that I am not yet ready to play on the PGA TOUR or compete in Turkey. My health is good, and I feel strong, but my game is vulnerable and not where it needs to be.
When I announced last week I was going to Safeway, I had every intention of playing, or I wouldn’t have committed. I spent a week with the U.S. Ryder Cup Team, an honor and experience that inspired me even more to play. I practiced the last several days in California, but after a lot of hours, I knew I wasn’t ready to compete against the best golfers in the world. I will continue to work hard, and plan to play at my foundation’s event, the Hero World Challenge, in Albany.
I would like to apologize and send my regrets to Safeway, the Turkish Airlines Open, the fans in California and Turkey and those that had hoped to watch me compete on TV. This isn’t what I wanted to happen, but I will continue to strive to be able to play tournament golf. I’m close, and I won’t stop until I get there.
As usual with anything about Tiger Woods, there is a lot of rumour but little certainty.
Only last week his friend and former tour player Jesper Parnevik told Golf Digest that, “He’s pounding it a mile and flushing everything. On the range at least, his trajectory and ball flight are like the Tiger we knew 15 years ago.”
While a member of the course where Woods’ practises thought he was all over the shop earlier in the summer, telling Golf Digest; “He used to hit 3-wood up into the back corner of the range, same spot every time. Last time, they were all over the place. It wasn’t good. Not like the old days.”
We all know hitting the ball on the range and out on the golf course are two very different things. Not to mention that the short game is a large chunk of the game of golf too. And we also know that Woods had a bad case of the chipping yips in the last few tournaments he played.
For now, the return of Tiger Woods is on hold. Again.
We will leave this with the best response to this news from Steven Bowditch who isn’t exactly playing that well himself at the moment – but loves a laugh, even at his own expense:
Don't wd tiger!! Come play a couple of practice rounds with me.. Your confidence will go through the roof!! 😜😜 https://t.co/oAIOR2NOc5
— Bowdo (@bowdo83) October 10, 2016
To be honest, who really care anymore? He is done. Time to move on.