Tiger Woods makes return to golf at Hero World Challenge: How did he look?

June 27, 2024

Tiger Woods made his return to golf Thursday, playing in his first tournament since withdrawing from the Masters in April.

At Albany Golf Club in the Bahamas during the first round of the Hero World Challenge, Woods shot a 3-over 75 after teeing off alongside Justin Thomas. Woods finished with four birdies, eight pars, five bogeys and a double.

Woods has come a long way since a February 2021 car crash left him with serious leg injuries and trouble walking during recovery. In February 2022, Woods could walk on a treadmill but said he has “a long way to go” to be able to walk the curves of a golf course.

Nearly a year later, Woods pulled out of the 2023 Masters, citing plantar fasciitis. It was the second time in 12 months Woods withdrew from a major after pulling out of the 2022 PGA Championship after three rounds. On April 19, Woods underwent a “subtalar fusion” procedure in his ankle to address his post-traumatic arthritis from a previous fracture.

How did Woods look?

The broad answer is that Woods hit the ball well and looked far more comfortable walking than he has in the other returns since the 2021 crash. He drove the ball far and pretty reliably, even reaching 177 mph off the tee. He hit his irons well. The issues in his round really stemmed from not practicing or playing 18 holes in months. His short game was shaky all day. He made little mental mistakes, often compounding the occasional error. He agreed, saying, “You take it for granted, I guess, when you’re playing all the time … instead of reacting to it, I was thinking about doing it.” Those are generally the parts of Woods’ game that will return with more reps.

The key was Woods looking healthy, relatively speaking, and looking like his body was capable of hitting the shots. — Brody Miller, golf staff writer

Woods was also just having fun

The other element this week is that Woods seems relaxed. He had his good friend and business partner Rob McNamara caddying for him, and he was paired with Thomas, a close friend, and caddie Jim “Bones” Mackay. When he sunk a 48-foot birdie putt on 11, he joked, “Great read, Robby!” because McNamara wasn’t actually helping with reads, and laughed heartily all the way to the hole. When the round was over, he broke a massive smile as he hugged Thomas.

Sure, Woods is a competitor and got quite angry when he tried to knock a ball out of a bush and it only moved a foot, but it was different. Woods’ vibe in 2022 and 2023 was one of intensity and focus, mentally willing his body to get through each round. Yes, Woods said he was sore “everywhere” Thursday, but he seemed far more at peace. — Miller

Required reading

(Photo: Mike Ehrmann / Getty Images)

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