WOODS HAS 'LONG WAY' TO RETURN

He commits to family golf event this week but is not physically ready for PGA Tour

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MIAMI - Tiger Woods will play alongside his 15-year-old son Charlie in the Dec 19-22 PNC Championship, but the 15-time Major winner said on Dec 20 that his PGA Tour return remains distant.

The 36-hole parent-child tournament at Ritz-Carlton Golf Club in Orlando will be the first quasi-competitive event for the American golf great since he underwent back surgery in September.

Prior to that, back trouble and leg injuries from a 2021 car crash have limited Woods' ability to play in the regular tournaments he once dominated.

"My leg is what it is," said Woods, who turns 49 on Dec 30. "It's still here.

"This year I struggled a lot with my back and it's a lot better, but I still have a long way to go."

Woods was 60th at the Masters and missed the cut in the year's other three Majors, struggling to recover form between rounds. In his only other start in 2024, he withdrew after one round at the Genesis Invitational - the February event he hosts at Riviera.