PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. — Golf without Tiger Woods was inevitable simply because of age.
He turns 50 at the end of this year and once leaned on the adage that “Father Time remains undefeated.” But for Woods, it has been the mother lode of injuries that is keeping him from going out on his own terms.
The latest was revealed in a social media post saying he had ruptured his left Achilles tendon and had surgery Tuesday. It was of the minimally invasive variety, but it will keep the 15-time major champion out of the Masters next month and likely everything else the rest of the year.
“It sucks,” four-time major winner Rory McIlroy said Wednesday at TPC Sawgrass, where The Players Championship tees off Thursday. “He doesn’t have much luck when it comes to injuries and his body. Hoping he’s in good spirits and hoping he’s OK. We obviously won’t see him play golf this year, and hopefully we see him maybe play in 2026.”
Everything is “maybe” with Woods, the player who made golf cool to watch, who caused TV ratings to spike and prize money to soar, who delivered a level of dominance measured not only by his record-tying 82 PGA Tour victories but the fact that he had no lasting rival — until the injuries and surgeries began to accumulate.