Tiger Woods is BACK! Golf legend tees off in Pro-Am at Genesis Invitational

Tiger Woods received an enthusiastic reception when he took the field early Wednesday morning ahead of tomorrow’s return to competitive action after a seven-month absence.

The legendary golfer was first out at 6:30 a.m. at the Genesis Invitational Pro-Am in Pacific Palisades and, despite an early start, had many fans in attendance to see him head out for a vital 18 holes. .

The 47-year-old Woods hasn’t played in a court tournament since The Open last July, and all eyes will be on him to see how he fares ahead of the first major of the year: the Players’ Championship at TPC Sawgrass. next month.

The 15-time major winner was all smiles as he walked the course, and reports from journalists in attendance were positive in terms of Woods’ health.

Barstool Sports’ Dan Rapaport wrote: ‘I will say that Tiger’s gait looks noticeably softer than last year.

Tiger Woods left early for his Pro-Am round at the Genesis Invitational in Los Angeles

Woods was all smiles as he prepared for his first competitive round of golf since last July.

Woods had a huge audience watching, even though he took the field at 6:30 a.m.

“He would walk quite a bit on pigeon toes and put all his weight on the outside of his right foot. The Woods team has done a lot of trial and error with the treatment/tape methods to try and improve his gait. Is working.’

He later added: “It’s really hard to judge Tiger’s game because the conditions are horrible. One of the coldest California mornings I can remember and the wind is blowing.

‘The score would be mega high right now. All things considered, he’s holding up quite well physically and the short game looks good.’

Speaking at a press conference ahead of the Genesis Open on Tuesday, Woods was quick to insist that he believes he can win the tournament.

“I wouldn’t have put myself here if I didn’t think I could beat these guys,” Woods said ahead of the event, which drew 19 of the top 20 players in the world.

‘I’m there to get a W, okay? So I don’t understand that making the cut is a great thing,” Woods said. ‘If I participated in the event, it’s always to get a W. There will come a time when my body won’t let me do it anymore, and it’s probably sooner rather than later.

“But to focus my progress around that transition and being the ambassador role and just trying to be here with the guys, no, that’s not in my DNA.”

Woods managed just nine rounds in 2022 due to complications surrounding the limb-threatening injuries he sustained in his car accident the previous year.

Woods hits his first tee shot at the Genesis Invitational as fans film the special moment

Woods hopes to be fit enough to play in the Players’ Championship at TPC Sawgrass in March.

More recently, that meant the 47-year-old had to withdraw from December’s Hero World Challenge due to plantar fasciitis in his right foot, however he did play later that month alongside his son Charlie in the two-round PNC Championship. , where players can use buggies.

“Plantar fasciitis is no fun, and now I can really recover and heal and progress on this because there are so many good things that I’ve been able to do physically, being able to hit the golf ball and practice and do everything is paralyzed,” Woods said on the subject. on December 18.

“But I haven’t been able to get from point A to point B, and obviously I’m going to work on this.”

Using a buggy was a key part of Woods’ involvement in the latter, with the American previously explaining that he retains the ability to swing a club with some of his former mastery, but currently can’t handle the rigors of a long walk.