NEWTOWN SQUARE, Pa. — For the first time in more than a month, Tiger Woods appeared before reporters yesterday and spoke about the balky left knee and Achilles that have derailed his career for the moment.
Woods was sporting a full beard in public for the first time in memory, and the scraggly facial hair was somewhat symbolic of an older Woods as he spoke in rare concessional tones about having learned lessons from his most recent physical setback.
The 35-year-old Woods, who last hit a golf ball 48 days ago at The Players Championship at the TPC Sawgrass, where he stunningly withdrew after playing the first nine holes in 42, delivered several revealing (for him) nuggets of news:
* He acknowledged that he rushed back to The Players and hurt himself badly enough that it set him back to the point where he’s highly uncertain about playing the British Open in two weeks.
* He said that had he not played The Players and reinjured himself, he’d be playing in this week’s AT&T National at Aronimink, the event he hosts.
* He said he’s now going to take a more conservative approach to his recovery and rehab and not rush back, saying he’s set no timetable for his return.
* He said he’d be “very surprised” if he was out the rest of the year “because I’m progressing. If I had knee surgery and I was out for a while, it would be a totally different deal.”
* He said there has been “no discussion” about having any further surgery, saying, “There’s no surgery required at all.” He also said he’s not wearing the protective boot anymore and is “walking freely.”
There was a time, not long ago, when Woods could play hurt and still be good enough to win. He won his last major championship in 2008 when he captured the U.S. Open with stress fractures in his leg and major knee ligament damage. He overcame Rocco Mediate in that epic 19-hole playoff.
Woods has now come to realize that, with the bar raised by the likes of reigning U.S. Open champion Rory McIlroy, he can no longer overcome his challengers while not playing at 100 percent.
Watching McIlroy decimate the field at the U.S. Open at Congressional was proof enough for Woods that his only chance to win more majors is to get himself 100 percent healthy again.
“I’m being smarter this time,” Woods said. “I’m going to do it differently this time. I am going to come back when I’m 100 percent ready, which is different for me.
“In retrospect, it was a borderline call whether I should have played The Players. Unfortunately, I pushed it too hard and hurt myself, and this time around I’m not going to do that again.
“I’m setting no timetable, which is very different for me. I’m just going to learn my lesson from what I did at the Players and apply it this time and come back when I’m 100 percent. I don’t know when that is going to be.”
Woods was typically noncommittal about the British Open, but it certainly doesn’t sound as if he has any chance of being ready by then. His deadline to commit to it is a week from Friday.
“I’m just playing it by ear right now,” Woods said.
Woods was complimentary of McIlroy’s first major championship win, saying with a hint of envy, “That was pretty good, wasn’t it? That was some seriously good playing. To do that at a U.S. Open, to be that aggressive the entire time, that was cool to watch.”
There were only a couple of moments yesterday when Woods showed his more recognizable defiance. The most telling moment came when someone asked him if Jack Nicklaus’ record of 18 majors is starting to look more unattainable.
“Absolutely not,” Woods, who has 14 majors, said. “He won when he was 46, right? I’ve still got some time. And on top of that, we’re about the same pace, I believe, years on Tour and majors won. So I feel pretty confident of what my future holds and very excited about it.
“I’m 35, not 65. I’ve still got some years ahead of me. I feel like my best years are ahead of me.”