Philadelphia, PA (SportsNetwork.com) – Tiger Woods will continue his break
after it was confirmed that he will not play next week’s Honda Classic.
The former world No. 1 said that he would like to play the Honda, but would
skip the event if he felt he couldn’t compete. Woods also said last week that
he wouldn’t return until his game was tournament-ready.
By skipping the Honda, that means Woods also will not be eligible for the WGC-
Cadillac Championship the following week. That will mark the first time in his
professional career that Woods wasn’t eligible for either a major or a World
Golf Championship event.
Woods struggled to an 82 in Phoenix and missed the cut badly. The following
week at the Farmers Insurance Open, Woods withdrew during his opening round
with tightness in his lower back.
“The last two weeks have been very disappointing to me, especially Torrey,
because I never want to withdraw,” Woods said last week. “Unfortunately,
lately injuries have made that happen too often.”
Woods was checked out by doctors and it was determined the back issue he dealt
with in San Diego was not related to the back surgery he has last year.
The 14-time major champion has had to withdraw three times in his last eight
official PGA Tour starts.
Woods withdrew from the Honda Classic during the final round last year due to
back spasms. He did play the following week at the WGC-Cadillac Championship
and posted his best finish of the season, a tie for 25th. A couple weeks
later, Woods underwent back surgery and was out of action until late June.
Woods has 79 career titles on the PGA Tour, but none since winning five times
in 2013 on the way to his 11th Player of the Year award. He has not claimed a
major championship since winning his 14th at the 2008 U.S. Open and remains
four shy of Jack Nicklaus’ all-time record.
