“As far as my last Open Championship or U.S. Open Championship, I don’t know when that is. It may or may not be,” Tiger Woods stated on Friday at the U.S. Open’s press conference after being asked about his last US Open start. This means there is uncertainty about whether he will play it next year or not. But at the Hero World Challenge’s press conference last December, Woods had explained his urge or a plan as such to play one event per month.
However, since the start of the 2024 season, this unwritten plan has not been followed. Woods made his 2024 debut at the Genesis Invitational but withdrew from it after the opening round citing flu, he then teed up at the Masters and finished T60. Then at the second major of the year, the PGA Championship, he missed the cut, followed by another tragedy at Pinehurst. Will the PGA Tour’s plan to have Woods play more work in their favor?
PGA Tour grants Tiger Woods a special lifetime exemption
Notably, in the last 6 months, Tiger Woods has failed to put through the one-event-per-month plan and has played only one event to completion. Accordingly, he had hinted that this U.S. Open might be his last. On the other hand, the PGA Tour has honored Woods for all of his contributions done for the game of golf.
Owing to his 82 PGA Tour victories, Jay Monahan and the PGA Tour Policy Board decided on Tuesday to give Woods a lifetime exemption to all the eight signature events, starting from 2025. However, the PGA Tour and Jay Monahan’s attempt to retain Woods on the PGA Tour to attract more eyeballs and arrest their declining ratings might go in vain.
With Woods struggling to play in as few as four events this year, the chances of him participating in the eight signature events, including the four majors, appear slim. With his injured body and fused back, the 15-time major winner has been struggling to make strides in the events as he used to. The PGA Tour has surely given him a leeway, a golden opportunity for any player, to be in the biggest PGA Tour events whenever he wants, however, he might never be able to play them at the cost of his health.
It might serve Monahan and the PGA Tour major upsets next year when Woods might not opt to be in the field of any signature events. Despite how little he might play, Tiger Woods remains determined to compete. The 15-time major winner has even revealed the final event he’ll participate in for the 2024 season.
Tiger Woods’s last event of the 2024 season
After missing the U.S. Open cut by two strokes, Woods detailed his plans for moving forward in the 2024 season. It has been made evident that the 48-year-old cannot continue to play every other week or even every month. His body needs much-required breaks in order to perform even as ordinary as he has been doing.
Taking all of it into account, Woods has addressed the press to convey that the British Open at Royal Troon would be the last event of the 2024 season. He said, “I’ve only got one more tournament this season. Just one more event and then come back, whenever I come back,” referring to the Open Tournament. The 82-time PGA Tour winner won The Open three times (2000, 2005, and 2006) in his career, and courtesy of that, Woods will be able to play the British Open till he turns 60.
The question is whether he would be healthy enough to continue to participate in every major. This year, Woods marked five events enough for himself. Next year if things work out for the best, the 48-year-old might play more. However, the chances of that are low and Woods might only opt for majors rather than the 8 signature events.
The PGA Tour might have made a special exemption for Tiger Woods but he might not be able to use it as frequently as deemed.
