Tiger Woods hits the course for a practice round as he prepares to make his long-anticipated return to action at the Genesis Invitational… with the golf icon all smiles as he debuts his brand new ‘Sun Day Red’ TaylorMade range

Tiger Woods was all smiles on Tuesday as he played a practice round ahead of his return to golf next week.

Woods, 48, last played in the father-son PNC Championship with his son Charlie in mid-December after missing most of the 2023 season due to injuries.

But the 15-time Major winner announced last week that he would play in the Genesis Invitational, and he looked in good spirits as he teed off at Riviera Country Club for practice.

Woods was seen with his caddy Lance Bennett as he prepared for the Genesis Invitational – which he is hosting – on February 15-18.

He also debuted his new brand “Sun Day Red,” which launched Monday under the TaylorMade umbrella.

Woods, seen with his caddy Lance Bennett, has not played a full-field event since the Masters

The golfer debuted his newly launched Sun Day Red brand, which launched this week

Woods wore a black polo and cap with white pants for his practice round.

He said of his new brand: “Sun Day Red will embody the love of playing and competing, and we are for people who share these values, whether on the court or in life. We will be focused on putting the athlete first in the product decisions we make.”

The golfer played just one competitive tournament (Hero World Challenge) after undergoing ankle surgery in April, and his participation next week will represent his first full-field event since withdrawing from the Masters last year.

Woods previously admitted he is unsure how he will qualify for this year’s US Open as he is not exempt from the tournament for the first time in almost three decades.

Tiger Woods has officially launched his new clothing and clothing line, ‘Sun Day Red’

His 2019 Masters victory qualified him for the next five US Opens, but that era is now over and Woods plummeted in the rankings following his largely inactive 2023.

However, he hopes to be on the course a lot more this year, telling Golf Channel late last year that he is targeting 12 tournaments in 2024, saying it seemed like a “reasonable” plan.

“I think the best scenario would be maybe one tournament a month,” he said. ‘I think that’s realistic. You should maybe start with the Genesis (in February), then something in March, maybe The Players. But we now have a setup where the biggest events happen once a month, so the system is prepared for that.”

Woods has not appeared at Winged Foot since missing the cut in 2020.