Tiger Woods had an up-and-down week at the Genesis Invitational, with some impressive golf stretches and frustrating moments of inconsistency. Despite posting a 4-under 67 on Saturday, his best round since his car crash two years ago, he could not put together back-to-back strong rounds.
Woods struggled with his putter in the final round and made five bogeys, finishing the tournament at 1-under for the week. While he expressed frustration with his putting throughout the tournament, he was pleased with his overall performance and saw signs of progress as the week went on.
For Woods, who was playing in his first tournament in seven months, the Genesis Invitational provided a valuable opportunity to get back into a regular golf routine and gauge his progress. While he is still far from his previous form, he is optimistic about his future prospects and believes that he can meet his own high standards in the coming months.
“It was progress, but obviously I didn’t win,” Woods said. “My streak [without a win] continues here at Riv. I felt like the first couple days I left certainly a lot of shots out there with some putts, especially Friday when I was blocking everything. Yesterday was better. Still wish I could have gotten within a touch of the leaders, but today they’re running away with it … I think it’s a good win all around.”
When Will We See Tiger Next?
Tiger Woods certainly didn’t win the Genesis Open but finishing under par was a huge step in playing more competitive golf for
Tiger. The experience left the 47-year-old visibly in pain after walking 72 holes in four days – something he has rarely done in the past two years. While Woods is doing everything he can to prepare for the physical demands of tournament play, there is only so much he can do on his own.
He has not ruled out playing in tournaments sooner, but his primary goal is to play in all four major championships and possibly a few additional tournaments.
Woods’ next stop is likely the Masters in April, but he may consider playing at The Players Championship before then. However, the timing may be tight, with only two tournaments between now and early March. The recovery process between rounds has been grueling and full of ice, and he anticipates that it will take him several days to properly reset. Ultimately, his focus is on ensuring that he is in the best possible physical condition to compete at the highest level.
“I pretty much lay in ice pretty much all night. It’s not fun, very cold all the time,” Woods said. “And then treatment, then getting muscles activated and go back and hop in the cold again. The ebb and flow of that, it’s hard. It’s hard mentally, it’s hard physically.”
“My back the way it is, all the surgeries I had on my back, my leg the way it is, I just can’t [try to play much more than the majors],” he said. “That’s just going to be my future … I know that and I understand that. That’s just my reality.”
While the Tiger of old is something we most likely will never see again, it sure is great to watch Tiger tee it up in competitive tournaments once again. If all we get is Tiger in the majors, here is to hoping he can put together three rounds in any major that gives us a Sunday afternoon with Tiger in contention. Golf fans around the world would love that.
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