Tiger Woods is scheduled to attend Augusta National, but will he play?Getty Images
Tiger Woods will compete at Augusta National in seven weeks. That’s all we know.
The only question remaining is whether the 15-time major champion will start at the Masters or simply watch Rory McIlroy defend his title.
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In his pre-tournament press conference as host of the Genesis Invitational, Woods teased that the Masters was not out of the question for him, but did not elaborate on what that meant or how he would structure his preparation if he felt physically and ready to return to the game.
On Saturday, Woods entered the CBS broadcast booth during the third round and deftly dodged questions from Jim Nantz. As CBS ran a promo for the Masters, Nantz mentioned McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler, then asked Woods if he knew of any other players who would be playing at Augusta National in 50 days.
“I know I’m going to get there,” Woods said. “We’re going to open The Patch. (Trevor Immelman) and I are going to have a great dinner. I know a lot of people who play.”
But is there really a chance that Woods will play in this year’s Masters?
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“I do,” Woods said with a smile.
What his pre-tournament preparation will look like is still up in the air, but Woods has presented a myriad of pre-Masters options, including a PGA Tour Champions debut.
Asked if he would play in a pre-Masters tournament if he decided to return, Woods said, “I don’t know.” “I don’t know if it’s a regular (PGA) tour, a senior tour or a member guest.”
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Tiger Woods celebrates the 2019 Masters. Anthony Kim celebrates LIV Golf Adelaide
Woods has not played since the 2024 British Open and is still rehabbing from lumbar disc replacement surgery he underwent in October. He said he has progressed to the point where he can hit full shots, but he is not at a level where he can return to competitive play. It’s a work in progress.
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“It’s one of those things that every day I keep working on, keep progressing on, keep working on, trying to get stronger, trying to get more and more endurance in this body, trying to get it to a level where I can play at the highest level again,” Woods said at a pre-tournament press conference.
“I haven’t hit it like that yet,” Woods joked when leader Jacob Bridgman hit his 7-wood to 2 feet for a tap-in eagle on the par-5 11th hole at Riviera.
“I wish I could play with these kids this week. It’s going to be a lot of fun to watch these kids play on this golf course,” Woods said.
Here’s what else we learned from Woods’ time in the CBS booth.
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1. Tiger’s motivation to lead the FCC
New PGA Tour CEO Brian Rolup praised Woods’ willingness to serve as chairman of the Future Competition Committee to help shape the future of the PGA Tour.
The 15-time major champion and 82-time PGA Tour winner has the chance to write the final chapter of his enduring legacy by helping rewrite the face of the PGA Tour. Mr. Woods said this involved countless meetings and nightly discussions of “ideas flying around” as he and other members of the board planned for the future.
For Woods, now 50, like Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus before him, it was important to him to play a role in making the tour that gave him so much better and helping the next wave of stars succeed on the tour.
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“Jack and Arnold actually started the PGA Tour when we split up,” Woods told Nantz when asked why it was important to him to help reorganize the tour. “When I took over the board and we were trying to rebuild the tour and get to a tour where the best players in the world play here, we were at a very difficult time. It was a difficult time. We’ve overcome the difficulties, we’ve gained some momentum, and now we have to keep that momentum going. I’m the chair of the FCC, and I’m involved in creating that momentum and passing it on to the next generation starting in 2027.”
Trevor Immelman asked Woods how he went from focusing on winning and setting records to focusing on improving the PGA Tour for the future. Woods reflected on his PGA Tour debut as a 16-year-old amateur at the Los Angeles Open, noting that it was important to him to finish the tour better than he expected.
“I’m dedicated in a different way,” Woods said. “My heart goes out to those little kids who teed off at the LA Open in 1992. I just want them to have the opportunity to play on the PGA Tour. The PGA Tour gave me that opportunity, and I’m trying to give the next generation the same opportunity.”
“We want to continue to improve the tour and make it even better than it is now.”
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Restructuring the PGA Tour schedule is a big part of the FCC’s mission. Woods said he has spoken with the CEOs and CFOs of each tournament sponsor, as well as the PGA Tour’s media partners, and all are open to moving things forward as needed. A number of changes are expected to take effect in 2027.
2. Tiger in Lowry’s Grand Slam, chance to repeat at Masters
Until McIlroy won the thrilling 2025 Masters, Woods was the last man to win a career Grand Slam. He won the 2000 St. Andrews British Open at the age of 24, completing a career Grand Slam.
McIlroy took more time. The Northern Irishman had seen the scars pile up as the drought continued for more than a decade, but Woods knew he would win at Augusta National.
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Woods told Nantz and Immelman about witnessing McIlroy’s moment, “I was lucky. I was able to stay out of the way when I was younger.” “The situation with Rory was that he had a lot of different opportunities and we always thought Augusta National was the place of all the places that he would win. The last time he got a chance was in a tough situation and he learned from it. We always thought he would make it. But as the years go by, it gets harder and harder. But in the end he did it. It was a great moment to see him become a lifetime Grand Slam champion.”
McIlroy will return to Augusta as the defending champion, joining Woods, Nicklaus and Nick Faldo as the only players to successfully repeat the Masters. Woods knows it’s a difficult task, but he also knows that winning at Augusta will give him confidence that he can do it again. McIlroy has it now.
“It’s not easy,” Woods said. “But once you try, you know you can win, and you know what it takes to get there.”
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3. Tiger’s “Most Nervous Tee Shot”
The Genesis Invitational, currently hosted by Woods, holds a special place in the 15-time major champion’s heart. With Woods in the booth for almost an hour, CBS took the opportunity to play footage of Woods’ debut at the 1992 Los Angeles Open, when the 16-year-old teed off in front of Sam Snead.
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“I was playing there as a pro-am, and that was one of the most nerve-wracking tee shots I’ve ever hit,” Woods said. “I could see the great Sam Snead right behind me, staring right at me.”
Woods matched Snead’s record of 82 wins on the PGA Tour, making the Southern California tournament even more important for Woods.
“I couldn’t have imagined the synergy between this place and what happened in my life,” Woods said.
4. Woods’ advice for taming Riviera greenery
The greens at Riviera Country Club provided the perfect setting for this week’s games. The Los Angeles area received a fair amount of rain earlier in the week, so the rain has eased without losing too much speed.
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Collin Morikawa said after Thursday’s first round that they were “hit and hope” green. On Saturday, Woods explained how the mixture of soft and fast Poa-Anua greens causes mind tricks.
“The speed makes for some interesting putts here,” Woods said. “But you can’t equate a soft green with a fast green. So the mentality is, ‘Oh, my 5-wood is going backwards on the green, or my 4-iron is going backwards,’ and then having to drip putts is very difficult mentally.”
For Woods, the key is to emphasize speed and eliminate the “pincoboard” effect that can occur on uneven, pore greens.
“If you putt downhill, obviously you’re going to drip, but if you putt uphill, you’re going to drip,” Woods said. “If it’s an uphill putt or a flat putt, I’m staying true to the fact that I don’t care if it goes back two or three feet. But I don’t want it. There’s a plinko effect on the greens, and if you happen to not be focused on speed, that can happen. So any time I have a chance to putt into the back of the hole, I’ll do it.”
The post Tiger Woods’ post-Masters Week plans and potential preparations (and 4 other insights) appeared first on Golf.
