Tiger Woods gave a grim health update Tuesday, casting doubt on whether he’ll be able to play in next month’s Masters tournament, even after making his first competitive return in over a year.
The 50-year-old icon returned at the TGL Finals in Florida on Tuesday, March 24, where his Jupiter Links GC team was thrashed 9-2 by Los Angeles Golf Club. Woods flashed his old form at times—launching drives past 300 yards and hitting a 279-yard 3-wood to about 24 feet—but his post-match remarks underscored the persistent injuries and physical limitations he still faces.
“We got our **** kicked at the end,” Woods admitted after the match. “Three eagles in a row, we didn’t respond.”
The 15-time major winner has gone through a punishing sequence of health issues. He had L4-L5 disc replacement surgery in October—his seventh operation on his back overall—and earlier had surgery for a ruptured left Achilles tendon in March 2025. He hasn’t played on the PGA Tour since missing the cut at The Open Championship in July 2024—over 600 days ago.
Woods filled in for Kevin Kisner on Tuesday, teaming with Max Homa and Tom Kim. Jupiter Links started well with a 2-0 lead, aided by a beautiful approach by Woods on the second hole that led to an early birdie. After that, things unraveled badly.
On the signature “Stinger” hole, Woods unleashed a classic low-trajectory 318-yard drive that briefly convinced fans the old Tiger was back. But on the par-3 seventh, he missed a crucial three-foot putt and angrily slammed his putter down. Los Angeles took control from there, stringing together three eagles to close out the match before Woods could play his planned singles match against Tommy Fleetwood.
Justin Rose finished it on the par-five 10th by hitting a 5-wood to about five feet. Jupiter Links conceded the eagle and the match right away. Rose, who lost a playoff to Rory McIlroy at the 2025 Masters, helped the Los Angeles Golf Club—also featuring Tommy Fleetwood and Sahith Theegala—win the championship with a match to spare in the best-of-three final.
Even in the one-sided loss, Woods proved his swing can still produce exceptional shots. His first full swing of the match was a 279-yard 3-wood that finished just short of the green. “Welcome back, young man,” Homa told Woods after that shot. The TGL format—where players hit only select shots instead of playing full rounds—made it harder for Woods to find a rhythm, but the raw power was clearly present.
The five-time Masters champion has been in a non-playing capacity with Jupiter Links during the 2026 TGL season while recovering from back surgery. His last competitive appearance before this was in early March 2025 in the indoor team league he helped start with McIlroy. Over the past five years he has completed only four 72-hole tournaments and played just 11 official events since his near-fatal car crash in February 2021.
The Masters starts April 9 at Augusta National, leaving Woods only two weeks to decide if his body can handle the tournament’s rigors. He said he’ll attend the Champions Dinner regardless, where McIlroy will host after winning the green jacket in a dramatic playoff over Rose in 2025—the year Woods missed due to his Achilles injury. Woods is also expected to be involved with The Loop at The Patch, a nine-hole short course his TGR Design firm built at Augusta’s municipal course, which opens to the public April 15.
Woods’ recent results at Augusta have been sobering. He posted a career-worst major round of 82 at the 2024 Masters and finished last among the 60 players who made the weekend with a 16-over 304—his highest 72-hole total as a pro. He withdrew before the final round in 2023 due to injury. His lone high point since the crash came in 2022, when he finished 47th and earned standing ovations simply for completing all four rounds.
As a past champion, Woods isn’t required to commit by any deadline and can wait until the last moment to decide, though he was noncommittal when asked Tuesday. “I’ve been trying, this body doesn’t recover like it did when I was 24, 25,” Woods told reporters. “I keep trying—I want to play.”
At Augusta, Woods is still chasing history: his five Masters titles leave him one short of Jack Nicklaus’s record of six. But at 50, with seven back surgeries and numerous other procedures, he faces a stark reminder of the limits his body may impose on the remainder of his career.
Jupiter Links had defeated McIlroy’s Boston Common Golf in the TGL semifinal on March 17, setting expectations for a triumphant finals run. Instead, Los Angeles dominated across both matches, leaving Woods to ponder whether his days competing at the highest level are over—or if one more Augusta miracle is still possible.
