We are six days away from the golf world descending upon Augusta National in what many consider to be the best week of the year.
But five-time Masters champion Tiger Woods will not be in this year’s field. On Mar. 11, Woods announced that he had undergone surgery to repair a ruptured Achilles, an injury he sustained while working out at home. Woods then said that his doctors expect him to make a full recovery and that his primary focus in the months to come will be on rehab.
And yet, this latest operation marked the 14th surgery of Woods’ career. He has gone under the knife almost as much as he has won major championships. His body has taken a toll over the years, especially over the last decade.
So why does he continue to try to play?
ESPN’s Andy North, who has served as a longtime analyst for the network and will call the action for next week’s Masters, provided a touching answer. He made these comments on a call previewing next week’s tournament with reporters.
“Deep down in my heart, he is one of the great competitors of all time, but if he didn’t have any children, I don’t know if he’d be playing now. I think one of the reasons he’s worked so hard after the accident was because it gave him a great opportunity to spend so much time with Charlie and play golf with his son, and watch Charlie get better,” North said.
“He made a comment to me one time that there are days Charlie comes home from school and embarrasses him into going and playing nine holes late in the afternoon with him. I think that’s something that’s so special.”
Given that Woods tore his Achilles, an injury that usually takes nine to 12 months to recover from, golf fans will likely not see the 15-time major winner tee it up until 2026 — if they’re lucky.
“Now we’re getting to the point that this next rehab is going to be brutally difficult for him. He doesn’t have to prove anything to anybody. He’s done everything he needed to do. If he were to announce in the next month or two that, you know what, ‘I’m never playing competitive golf again.’ I think that would be great, and no one would have an issue with that,” North said.
“I think that the competitor in him — you know, you always think you can rehab. You always think you can come back. You always believe that you can do this. But I don’t have any magic answers there. I would think that he’s going to try to play some events after this rehab. Is it going to be a Tiger Woods that can compete? Deep in my heart, I don’t think so.”
Andy North’s ESPN colleague, Curtis Strange, who won the U.S. Open in back-to-back years at Brookline and Oak Hill in 1988 and 1989, echoed this sentiment. But Strange also pointed out how Woods’ mere presence on the property — regardless of whether he plays — will prove invaluable for future generations.
“I want to see him at Augusta for a long time in the future playing. He’s not going to play the way he wants to, but I think the people would love to see him, much like they saw Jack and Arnie, especially Arnie, for a long time,” Strange said.
“I think we need those people around, to be around the younger generation, to answer questions — players learn by example, how to play golf courses. Just be part of the elder statesman society.
“I hope he gets back to where he can play. We don’t even know if he can play ever again. It’s going badly. But especially here, where he can come back and be comfortable and just be around. The people can’t get enough of him. We can’t get enough of him. It would be sad that he wouldn’t come back here and play in the future, but what the future holds, we have no idea.”
Jack Milko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. Follow him on X @jack_milko.
