Tiger Woods describes injury as ‘more painful’ than any other
Tiger Woods is no stranger to injury and recovery, but his latest round of rehabilitation is like nothing he ever has experienced.
“This has been an entirely different animal,” Woods told Golf Digest’s Daniel Rapaport of his effort to recover from a mangled right leg that was surgically repaired after his single-vehicle rollover crash Feb. 23 near Los Angeles. “I understand more of the rehab processes because of my past injuries, but this was more painful than anything I have ever experienced.”
Woods is under contract with Golf Digest to provide editorial content. The interview was his first public comment about his recovery.
No charges were filed against Woods in the incident, which occurred on the Tuesday after he had hosted the PGA Tour’s Genesis Invitational, which benefits his foundation. He underwent at least two rounds of surgery at Los Angeles-area hospitals before returning to his home in Jupiter, Fla., to begin his recovery.
Woods, 45, has not competed in a PGA Tour event since Nov. 15, 2020, when he tied for 38th at the Masters. He remains tied with the late Sam Snead for the most victories on the PGA Tour, at 82.
“My physical therapy has been keeping me busy,” Woods told Golf Digest’s Rapaport. “I do my routines every day and am focused on my No. 1 goal right now: walking on my own. Taking it one step at a time.”
At the time of the crash, Woods was only two months removed from his fifth back operation, a microdiscectomy procedure. His extensive list of injuries includes five operations on his left knee over the years.
He did not disclose a projected timeline for a return to competition.
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