Tiger Woods is gearing up for his second tournament back after his horrific car crash, and he’s feeling “a lot stronger.”
Woods hit Southern Hills in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on Sunday for a brief practice round ahead of the PGA Championship, which will be his first appearance since his run at The Masters.
Though he made the cut and played all four days, Woods was visibly exhausted by the end of his week at Augusta National.
Now, a month later, he said things have changed significantly.
“I’ve gotten a lot stronger since The Masters,” Woods said on Sunday, via Golfweek. “We went back to work on Tuesday [after The Masters]. Monday was awful. I did nothing and Tuesday was leg day.
“So we went right back after it. Everything is better.”
Woods finished 13-over at The Masters in April, about 14 months after he nearly lost his right leg in a Southern California car crash. He had said for months leading up to the tournament that simply walking that far for that long was his biggest worry about competing again — and it showed by the end of the week.
Woods was seen slowly limping his way off the course after finishing, and told a longtime Augusta National member that “this was the worst pain he ever had.”
But now, more than a month later, he’s in a much different situation.
“100% I see him stronger,” caddy Jo LaCava said on Sunday, via Golfweek. “I don’t think he’s getting quite as tired as quickly. I see more endurance than anything.”
How the PGA Championship goes remains to be seen, and it’s hard to put too high of expectations surrounding Woods’ game. He’s listed at +6,600 to win the tournament on BetMGM, well behind favorites Scottie Scheffler and Jon Rahm.
Woods, however, is just ready to get back out there again — and he knows his leg is only going to get better as he moves along.
“It’s only going to keep getting stronger,” Woods said of his leg, via Golfweek. “The more I use it, the more strength it gains. Am I ever going to have full mobility? No. Never again. But I’ll be able to get stronger. It’s going to be ache, but that’s the way it’s going to be.
“I’m excited about [the PGA Championship]. I’m not going to play that much going forward so anytime I do play, it’s going to be fun to play and compete. There are only so many money games you can play at home.”