Woods undergoes fifth back surgery to miss Torrey Pines and Riviera



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Tiger Woods suffered a setback with his back, revealing on Tuesday that he recently had a fifth operation that will prevent him from starting the year until the end of West Coast Swing on the PGA Tour.

Woods will not play next week at the Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines, which he won seven times, last time in 2013. He also won the US Open in 2008 at Torrey Pines, which again hosts the US Open in June.

He will also miss the Genesis Invitational February 18-21 in Riviera, where he is hosting the tournament.

In a statement from its TGR Foundation, that Woods also tweeted, he didn’t say when he had the microdiscetomy surgery. It was to remove a fragment of a pressurized disc that was causing him nervous pain during the Cabin Crew Members Championship last month that he played with Charlie, his 11-year-old son.

Doctors said the operation was a success and predicted a full recovery, the statement said.

“I can’t wait to start training and I’m focused on getting back on tour,” said Woods.

Woods’ latest victory at Torrey Pines was when back problems started to surface. He had his first microdisectomy just before the Master 2014, then he had two more in September and October 2015.

The fourth surgery in April 2017 was major, to fuse her lower spine. Woods’ comeback was successful, leading to a 2018 Circuit Championship victory – his first in five years – and he crowned success by winning the Masters in 2019, his 15th major and his first in 11 years.

When he won the Zozo Championship in Japan in the fall of 2019, he tied Sam Snead’s career winning record with No.82, and the record seemed like only a matter of time. But he’s never been in serious conflict all last year and missed a full month with a minor back problem before the golf course was shut down by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Upon his return in July, he finished no better than a tie for 37th place in the PGA Championship in seven tournaments he has played. In six of those events where he made the cut, he completed a combined 107 shots to the head.

He turned 45 at the end of last year and his number of surgeries is now 10 – five on his left knee, five on his back.

Woods said after being tied for 38th in his Masters title defense that he is having tougher days than the others.

“My body just has times when it doesn’t function like it used to,” he said in November. “No matter how hard I try, things just don’t work the way they used to, and no matter how much I push and ask this body, sometimes it doesn’t work. Yes, sometimes it is more difficult than others to be motivated.

“Yes, because things hurt me and have to deal with things I had never had to face before.

He played the PNC Championship with his son and they finished seventh.

Woods plans to be at Riviera in his role as host of the tournament. The statement only said that he would miss Torrey Pines and Riviera. He hasn’t been so predictable with his schedule in recent years leading up to the Masters April 8-11.

The recently contested World Golf Championships event in Mexico has moved to Florida and follows West Coast Swing. Then it’s Bay Hill, where Woods has won eight times (all before his back surgeries) but has jumped the last two years, and The Players Championship. There are still three tournaments before the Masters.



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