As if the anticipation was not building steadily enough for next year’s 150th Open Championship at the Home of Golf, then Tiger Woods has added a few more stacks of hype by saying that he intends to do all he can to recover from his leg injuries to be at St Andrews “my favourite course in the world”.
In his first press conference since his life-threatening car crash in February, Woods, 45, refused to give any details about the mysterious accident, insisting “all those answers have been answered in the investigation”.
“Yeah, people are going to poke and prod and want to know more about my business, I understand that,” he said “They can poke and prod at me all they want, just stay away from my family.
Yet if he was typically guarded in his responses to questions that still could do with explanations – ie ‘how did he lose control?’ ” – he was rather more animated about discussing his chances of being in that Claret Jug field next July.
“Yeah, I would love to play at St. Andrews, there’s no doubt about it. It’s my favourite golf course in the world. To be a two-time Open champion there, just being a part of the champions dinner is really neat,” he said. “It’s just an honour to be a part of a room like that. Yes, I would love to be able to play that Open Championship, there’s no doubt about it. Physically, hopefully I can. I’ve got to get there first.”
On Monday, Woods acknowledged in an interview that he would “never play full-time again” and he reiterated that admission. He also referred to Ben Hogan again, but this time was more pointed in his comparison. In 1953, Hogan won three majors despite almost being killed in his own car crash a few years before.
“I don’t foresee this leg ever being what it used to be, hence I’ll never have the back what it used to be, and the clock’s ticking,” he said. “All that combined means that a full schedule and a full practice schedule and the recovery that it would take to do that, no, I don’t have any desire to do that. But to ramp up for a few events a year as I alluded to yesterday as Mr. Hogan did… well he did a pretty good job of it, and there’s no reason that I can’t do that and feel ready.
“I’ve come off surgeries before, I’ve come off long layoffs and I’ve won or come close to winning before. So I know the recipe for it. I’ve just got to get to a point where I feel comfortable enough where I can do that again.”
