A year ago this month, Tiger Woods he underwent the latest back operationstarting a long and difficult recovery process. Since then, a lot has happened in Tiger’s life, even delaying his return to pro golf.
His PGA Tour comeback was first thwarted on March 27 of last year, when Woods he flipped his Range Rover after clipping a trailer near his home in Florida. He was arrested at the scene and charged with DUIthen shortly after announced that he was “removed” from public life seek behavioral treatment in Switzerland.
Months passed before Woods reappeared in public in a short speech at the Travelers Championship in Junesupporting the PGA Tour’s competition changes. We saw him speak again at the end of August in a pre-recorded message in honor of his friend Notah Begay at his Payne Stewart award ceremony.
In September, Woods’ legal situation was resolved when he struck a deal with Florida prosecutorschanging his plea to guilty and receiving a five-year suspension of his driver’s license in addition to the fines. The plea deal meant Woods would avoid prison, which was a legitimate possibility. However, it was only this fall that we saw Woods swing a club in public. Just this week, Woods was filmed hitting balls in an exhibition, raising questions about when we might see the 15-time major champion in a professional tournament.
Tiger Woods’ swing looks solid in new videos
Earlier this week, Woods hosted the TGR Junior Invitational at Pebble Beach. After the competition concluded, Woods made an exhibition.
In videos posted by TGR Live Events on social mediaWoods can be seen hitting several smooth iron shots. His swing looks solid, and he showed no signs of pain in the footage that was released.
The caption for the posts read: “Back on your feed, right where this swing belongs. Fresh from today’s show.”
Woods last played in a professional tournament in July 2024, when he missed the cut in the Open Championship. It was one of only five starts that Tiger made that season. He missed the cut in two others, withdrew from the Genesis Invitational after the first round and finished 60th at the Masters thanks to a third-round 82.
He made just three starts each in 2023 and 2022 and didn’t play at all in 2021 after a devastating car accident in California. In the 2019-2020 season, Woods made 10 total starts. Among those was his last win at the Zozo Championship at the end of 2019. He missed just one cut in that stretch, at the COVID-delayed US Open in September 2020.
When will Tiger Woods return to the PGA Tour?
A crucial difference between this potential return of Tiger compared to the past is that it is not based on an injury. Woods was aiming to return to pro golf at the 2026 Masters after recovering from back surgery in October 2025.
By all accounts, he was physically prepared to do it. Then came his DUI crash. But Woods was thankfully uninjured in the incident. Therefore, there is no new injury to hinder Tiger as he contemplates his latest comeback (although his litany of previous injuries provides a permanent obstacle to his game).
Now that we know Woods isn’t serving prison time, he’s free to make his pro golf comeback. The question is when and where he will do it.
There are a few obvious possibilities. First up is the Hero World Challenge scheduled for December 3-6. Woods hosts the event and has made several comebacks from injury here. It’s a casual event with a limited field (and limited on-site media), making it a solid bet for his return.
The next opportunity would be the 2026 PNC Championship, which runs from December 17-20. Woods has played in the event with his son Charlie several times. It also provides a relaxed competitive atmosphere that allows Tiger to get some reps without a lot of pressure.
If Woods chooses to sit out the rest of the year, then we’ll likely see him make his long-awaited return at the 2027 Genesis Invitational, a tournament he hosts, next February. Beyond that, Masters 2027 should be circled in your calendar. As a five-time champion, Woods can play the Masters for the rest of his life.
If his return is delayed longer than expected, Woods could instead return to the 2027 Open Championship at St. Andrews. As a former champion, Woods can play the Open until he turns 60 and has won two Opens at the Old Course in his career.
Looking for a more unexpected comeback scenario for Tiger? At 50, Woods is now eligible to play on the PGA Tour Champions. So he could hypothetically play his first pro golf in years in a senior event in 2027.
But before we know where Tiger will make his comeback, we need to answer another question: Tiger you want to return to pro golf? Given his long list of debilitating injuries, it is possible that he will decide to retire.
We’ll find out soon enough.
