Gary back in control after brain surgery

WOODLAND IS THRILLED TO BE IN THE MIX

- By Neil McLeman

GARY WOODLAND declared he was back "in control of my thoughts and my emotions" after contending for a PGA Tour title for the first time since open brain surgery.

The 2019 US Open champion had a tumour the size of a baseball removed in September 2023 and is still on medication.

And in the latest Netflix Full Swing documentary series, the emotional American revealed that, five days before the operation, he wrote letters to his three young children and wife Gabby telling them how much he loved them in case he did not survive.

The former world No.12 said: "Those letters were the hardest things I have ever done."

Woodland, 40, returned to the PGA Tour only four months later but struggled last season and still suffered from headaches.