Tiger Woods could be eyeing a return to competitive golf in time for The Masters in 2026.
Woods gave a mostly positive assessment during his latest injury update while speaking to reporters about a variety of topics on Tuesday, Feb. 17, ahead of this week’s Genesis Invitational, the annual PGA Tour event he hosts in Southern California. The 50-year-old golfer said he’s back to hitting full shots, discussed the potential of debuting on the PGA Champions Tour this season and did not shut down questions about teeing up at Augusta National in less than two months.
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“No,” Woods said with a sly smile when asked if playing in The Masters in April is off the table, according to Golfweek.
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Woods did not give a target date for his return. The five-time Masters champion hasn’t competed on the PGA Tour since the 2024 Open Championship.
Woods was last scheduled to play on the PGA Tour in the Genesis Invitational in February 2025, but withdrew from the field before the tournament started after his mother died. He then ruptured his Achilles in March while training and practicing at home. He underwent the seventh back surgery of his career last October.
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“It’s just sore. It takes time. Willy Z went through it, and it took him a while to come back,” Woods said Tuesday, referring to 29-year-old PGA Tour golfer Will Zalatoris, who underwent his own back surgery last year and returned to action late last season. “I’m a little bit older than Willy Z. It’s probably going to take me a little bit longer. My body has been through a lot.”
Added Woods: “It’s just one of those things where it’s each and every day, I keep trying, I keep progressing, I keep working on it, trying to get stronger, trying to get more endurance in this body and trying to get it at a level at which I can play at the highest level again. The quality of life was better back then because it was just new. It was my first operation, so I’ve had many operations since then, so body has been through a little bit more.”
Woods can prepare for The Masters this year by playing on the PGA Champions Tour, which permits players to use a cart. He could potentially make his debut on the over-50 circuit at one of three events in March – the James Hardie Pro Football Hall of Fame Invitational in Boca Raton, Florida, the Cologuard Classic in Tucson, Arizona or the Hoag Classic in Newport Beach, California – if he wanted to play in a tournament before The 2026 Masters begin on April 9.
“It’s challenging, and now I entered a new decade, so that number is starting to sink in and has us thinking about the opportunity to be able to play in a cart,” Woods said. “That’s something that, as I said, I won’t do out here on this (PGA) Tour because I don’t believe in it. But on the Champions Tour, there’s certainly that opportunity.”
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Tiger Woods injury update hints at 2026 Masters, Champions Tour debut
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