Tiger Woods’ newest return to aggressive golf ended with a withdrawal seven holes into his second spherical, however somewhat than ache or a brand new damage holding him again, the 15-time main champion needed to drop out attributable to sickness.
Woods withdrew from the Genesis Invitational, the event he hosts, after experiencing flu-like signs on Friday afternoon in Pacific Palisades, Calif.
The 48-year-old hadn’t performed an official PGA Tour occasion for the reason that Masters 10 months in the past, when he withdrew earlier than present process ankle surgical procedure. After taking pictures a 1-over 72 on Thursday, he admitted to reporters he was coping with again spasms together with soreness in his surgically repaired leg.
Woods opened Friday’s spherical with a birdie and made consecutive bogeys at Nos. 4-5. After saving par on the par-3 sixth and hitting his drive on the par-4 seventh, the Golf Channel broadcast confirmed a guidelines official driving Woods off the course on a cart.
Even after the PGA Tour confirmed Woods’ withdrawal, hypothesis grew when hearth and paramedic vehicles have been seen exterior the Riviera clubhouse. But Woods didn’t depart in a kind of vehicles, and he was later seen leaving the property in a traditional event automobile.
Rob McNamara, Woods’ good friend and enterprise companion, supplied temporary particulars.
“So he started feeling some flu-like symptoms last night,” McNamara mentioned. “Woke up this morning, they were worse than the night previous. He had a little bit of a fever and that, and was better during the warm-up, but then when he got out there and was walking and playing, he started feeling dizzy.
“Ultimately the doctors are saying he’s got some — potentially some type of flu and that he was dehydrated. He’s been treated with an IV bag and he’s doing much, much better and he’ll be released on his own here soon.”
McNamara mentioned Woods’ again was effective and the signs “are reversing themselves now that he’s had an IV.”
The withdrawal places a damper on the golf star’s newest tried comeback. After a sequence of accidents, together with a single-car accident that just about value him his leg in 2021, Woods has mentioned that enjoying one event a month was an inexpensive aim for this level in his profession.
This is the third time Woods has withdrawn in six official PGA Tour begins for the reason that 2021 accident. He dropped out of the 2022 PGA Championship after 54 holes and didn’t return to complete his third spherical on the rain-soaked 2023 Masters.