15x major champion Tiger Woods pleased with physical progress during comeback at Hero World Challenge

Tiger Woods made his return to the competitive golf scene this Thursday at the Hero World Challenge after a seven-month absence.

15x major champion Tiger Woods pleased with physical progress during comeback at Hero World Challenge

Tiger Woods (Pic Credit: Imago)

The eyes of the golfing world have been on Tiger Woods a lot lately. The 15-time major champion made his return to the golf greens after a seven-month absence. While his performances have been a little under par, his health seems to be in good shape. The golf great himself is pleased with the physical progress he has made over the past few days.

Woods had been out of golfing action since his knee injury at the Masters. He would later undergo a subtalar fusion surgery on his right leg and has been recovering since. Making a return at the Hero World Challenge, the 47-year-old has appeared to be in great physical condition, thus sparking speculations of a long run in 2024.

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This physical progress was also observed by his fellow professional competitors as Brian Harman hailed him for his phenomenal fitness. The veteran golfer previously claimed that he was hoping to take part in a few events next year as he sets on a career resurgence.

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I'm very excited at how I have felt physically. Knocking off some rust. I mean, we can always knock off rust at home, but it's so different come game time... To be able to knock off some of the rust as I have this week and showed myself that I can recover each and every day...I'm very excited how the week's turned out.
Tiger Woods on this physical progress through Sports Illustrated.

Tiger Woods shoots 1-under 71 during third round at Hero World Challenge

The question among the minds of many fans regarding the return of Tiger Woods was whether he can still crack it. Since his car crash in 2021, the 82-time PGA Tour winner has played limited golf. Coming back from a seven-month absence was not going to be easy and so it has proved as Woods has struggled on the greens. He would shoot 1-under 71 during the third round at the Hero World Challenge, showing slight improvement.

The major issue has been the rust that has affected him. While Woods can still hit long tee shots, make birdies and putts, it is clear that the absence from competitive golf has made him a little rusty. Despite this high score of 71, the golfer was pleased with his performance.

Tiger Woods
Tiger Woods (Pic Credit: Imago)

At the moment, he is 16 shots behind the leader Scottie Scheffler. However, where Woods finishes in the rankings was never a huge factor. The fans were just happy to see him perform on the golf course again. He is currently tied for 16th spot alongside two-time defending champion Viktor Hovland, who surprisingly finds himself in the bottom half of the rankings.

Speaking of the Hero World Challenge, the tournament is now heading into the final round on Sunday. Scheffler currently leads the rankings and has a three-stroke lead over Englishman Matt Fitzpatrick. The current World No. 1 would be hoping to close off the tournament in style and take another title home with him.

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