Tiger Woods was in contention for a rare appearance on a golf course soon, but it has recently been confirmed that he won’t play at The Masters.
Woods is taking time away from golf following a car crash, in a bid to prioritize his physical and mental health.
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It is a very wise move from the 15-time major champion and 82-time PGA Tour winner, who had only just made a return to golf last month.
The 50-year-old played in the TGL final, his first appearance in any form of competitive golf since the summer of 2024.
That arrived at The Open Championship, with such a lengthy absence causing Woods to plummet the Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR).
Tiger Woods all the way down in 4169th in the OWGR
Updated every week, the OWGR currently ranks American legend Woods as the 4169th best player in the world.
It is a long, long way away from his career-high rank of world number one, although his decline is no surprise whatsoever.
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And it will also be of very little significance to the veteran, who simply needs to focus on getting back to full health.
Hope remains that the legend can make a return to PGA Tour action, but such a return is seemingly some way off right now.
He missed the cut in that most recent appearance at The Open, which followed missed cuts at the PGA Championship and the US Open too.
Elsewhere in the 2024 season, he finished 60th at The Masters after withdrawing during The Genesis Invitational.
Photo by James Gilbert/TGL/TGL Golf via Getty Images
The Masters suffers double blow with Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson
Woods’ absence is a big blow for The Masters, with the iconic figure certainly still able to attract huge crowds despite his lack of golf in recent years.
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And unfortunately for all concerned parties at Augusta National, he isn’t the only high-profile figure missing out.
Phil Mickelson, who certainly hasn’t always seen eye-to-eye with his fellow American Woods, has confirmed he’ll miss the major due to a family matter.
Between them, the pair boast eight wins at The Masters and 21 in majors overall.
Incidentally, now playing on LIV Golf, Mickelson is 1368th in the OWGR, with a career-high of 2nd, arguably representing the best golfer to never reach world number one.
Fortunately, fans at Augusta National should still be in for a world-class event, with current world number one Scottie Scheffler and defending champion Rory McIlroy, world number two, among those taking part.
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Other notable names include world number 1418 Vijay Singh and world number 4935 Fred Couples, with both having reached number one during their prime.
Read more:
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Patrick Reed shares his honest opinion on Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson missing The Masters
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