Tiger Woods talks about playing PGA Tour Champions, jokes about using ‘little buggy’
AUGUSTA, Ga. — Tiger Woods knows his limitations on a golf course and they have nothing to do with his swing.
“I just have to be cognizant of how much I can push it,” he said Tuesday during his pre-tournament news conference. “I can hit a lot of shots but the difficulty for me is going to be the walking going forward. It is what it is. I wish it could be easier.”
It can be easier. But not for three more years.
“I’ve got three more years, where I get the little buggy and be out there with Fred (Couples). But until then no buggy.”
With that, Woods essentially confirmed his intention to play on the PGA Tour Champions, something Jack Nicklaus hinted at a month ago.
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Woods, 47, becomes eligible for the 50-and-over seniors’ circuit on Dec. 30, 2025. He’s playing competitively for just the fourth time since the February 2021 car crash in which he nearly lost his leg, or worse.
“Mobility, it’s not where I would like it, but … I’ve said to you guys before, I’m very lucky to have this leg; it’s mine,” he said. “Yes, it had been altered and there’s some hardware in there, but it’s still mine.
“It has been tough and will always be tough. The ability and endurance of what my leg will do going forward will never be the same. I understand that.”
Players on the Champions tour are allowed to use a cart. On the PGA Tour, if golfers have a disability, they must apply to ride during a competitive round. Woods could do that now but he refuses.
Nicklaus was a guest on Nick Faldo’s podcast when he said he told Woods he could use a cart now.
“He says, ‘I’m not going to do that,’ ” Nicklaus said: “He says, ‘When I get to the senior tour, I will.’ ”
Woods’ lone event this year was the Genesis Invitational seven weeks ago. He finished tied for 45th. The 2022 Masters was his first tournament since the accident. He made the cut with an opening round 71 followed by a 74 before closing with a pair of 78s.
“I think my game is better than it was last year at this particular time,” Woods said. “I think my endurance is better. But it aches a little bit more than it did last year just because at that particular time when I came back, I really had not pushed it that often. And I had a little window in which I did push it and was able to come back.”
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