Staff Reporter.
Tiger Woods says he been pleasantly surprised by his return to action after shooting a one-under-par 71 in round three at the Hero World Challenge.
He is tied for 16th in the Bahamas on level par in the 20-man field, 16 shots behind leader Scottie Scheffler.
“I’m very pleasantly surprised at how I’ve recovered every day,” said Woods, 47.
“I still have the game; it’s whether the body can do it or not.”
His American compatriot Scheffler, the world number one, is three shots clear of England’s Matt Fitzpatrick after both players completed seven-under rounds of 65.
Woods began Saturday with two bogeys before birdies at the third, sixth eighth and ninth – where he got up and down from a greenside bunker.
He had two bogeys and a birdie on the back nine, which included a seven-foot par putt miss at the 18th.
“It could have been a little bit better than the score indicates. I think I could have shot something in the high 60s today,” said Woods, who shot 75 and 70 in his opening rounds.
Woods had fusion surgery on a bone in his ankle to address post-traumatic arthritis following the 2021 car crash that kept him out of golf for nearly 14 months.
He said recently that he had “zero issues” with the ankle, but other injury problems – including with his back – remain.
Woods hopes to play one tournament per month in 2024 and that this event will help to determine his schedule for next season.
Meanwhile the PGA Tour Policy Board sent out a two-page memo to the Tour’s members late Friday night encouraging unity and a willingness to negotiate with potential investors amid a flurry of rumors that suggest that LIV Golf is looking to add to its player pool.
Following the second round of the Hero World Challenge in Albany, Bahamas, Woods, Jordan Spieth, Charley Hoffman, Patrick Cantlay, Webb Simpson and Peter Malnati – the board’s player directors – distributed the memo, addressing “speculation in our game” while providing updates on talks with Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund.
Adam Scott also signed off on the letter. Scott is set to replace Hoffman at the beginning of 2024.
“With the 2024 season just around the corner and with so much speculation in our game, we wanted to speak to you directly,” the memo said. “Since Tiger joined the policy board on August 1, the player directors have been doing everything we can to ensure the PGA Tour is best positioned to thrive for decades to come.”
“We have learned a lot, and we are encouraged by progress on multiple fronts.”
As outlined in a framework agreement, Saudi Arabia’s PIF is supposed to complete an investment agreement with the PGA Tour by the end of 2023. The Saudi PIF finances LIV Golf, which has gotten stars like Dustin Johnson, Brooks Koepka and Phil Mickelson to jump ship and make the move from the PGA Tour.
PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan has a meeting scheduled next week with Yasir Al-Rumayyan, the governor of Saudi Arabia’s PIF.