Tiger Woods says he is back to win

Golf superstar Tiger Woods has announced his comeback from injury by saying he can win again, but also admitted that he faces a difficult dinner date with the LIV Golf rebels at the Masters.

Apart from a father-and-son outing and a charity shindig, this week’s Genesis Invitational in Los Angeles is the 15-times major winner’s first meaningful event since the Open at St Andrew’s in July. Lingering injuries from the car crash of two years ago and then a bout of plantar fasciitis have derailed the 47-year-old’s outings and he has said he will be restricted to the majors and a few additional tournaments.

As a stalwart of the PGA Tour fight against LIV Golf, his comeback is timely, and probably no coincidence with the Saudi series due to announce its teams over the next three days. How did he assess the battle?

“It’s been an ebb and flow, it really has,” he said. “And it’s been difficult, there’s no lie. You’ve seen our ambassador, Rory [McIlroy], go through it. It’s been tough on him, but he’s been exceptional. To be able to go through all that, I’ve been with him on all those conference calls and side meetings. For him to go out there and play and win, it’s been incredible.”

Woods has had few opportunities to face off with the breakaway players but he will meet some of his old rivals in their LIV livery at Augusta in April.

 “I don’t know what that reaction’s going to be,” he said. “I know that some of our friendships have certainly taken a different path, but we’ll see when all that transpires.

“The Champions Dinner is going to be obviously something that’s talked about. We as a whole need to honour Scottie [Scheffler, last year’s winner]. It’s his dinner . . . but also realising the nature of what has transpired and the people that have left, just where our situations are, either legally or emotionally.”

The clear message here was that Woods believes he will be in the field come the Masters. His more pressing concern is getting through this week intact.

“The leg is better than it was last year but it’s my ankle,” he told a packed press conference at the Riviera Club. “It’s gotten so much better the last couple months. And I would not have put myself out here if I didn’t think I could beat these guys and win the event. That’s my mentality. I am very rusty, but I’ve come off a rusty situation before and I’ve done well and I’ve had to utilise a lot of those tactics in practice in build-up.”

This was typically Tiger with that same defiance that confounded almost all when he won the Masters in 2019. Asked to comment on LeBron James’ record-breaking points tally in the NBA, he did not look too far for a comparison. “Maybe me and Sam [Snead] at 82 [PGA Tour wins]? It takes a career to get to those numbers. That’s how I think it’s probably best how you look at it.”