A defiant Tiger Woods believes he stands every chance of winning his sixth Masters championship this weekend despite admitting his body no longer holds up like it used to.
Woods, 48, is looking to make a record 24th straight cut at the Masters after impressing in practice rounds on Monday and Tuesday, with partner Will Zalatoris describing his performance in the former session as ‘great’.
Just 12 months after undergoing surgery on his ankle, the golf icon heads to Augusta having only played 24 holes of competitive golf this year, meaning he faces an uphill battle to make the cut this time around.
And as he aims to slowly work his way back into contention, Woods conceded that virtually every aspect of the sport is becoming increasingly difficult for him four months after his 48th birthday.
‘As far as my physicality on certain shots [goes], every shot that’s not on the tee box is a challenge,’ he admitted at a press conference on Tuesday. ‘Once we start the hole it’s a bit of a challenge.’
Tiger Woods believes he stands every chance of winning his sixth Masters championship
Woods insists he can add another Green Jacket to his collection despite his physical problems
The 48-year-old is said to have been performing well in practice sessions so far this week
He last prevailed at the tournament in one of the greatest comeback stories of all time in 2019
The later added: ‘The body [has] things that just flare up. The training that we have to do at home, it changes from a day-to-day basis. Some days I feel good, other days not so much.’
Woods has previous when it comes to upsetting the odds at Augusta. In 2019, he became the second oldest golfer in history to win the Masters at 43 years of age.
It was his first major triumph in over a decade and remains one of the greatest comeback stories sport has ever seen, yet four years on Tiger insists he isn’t done there.
When asked what he believes he is capable of achieving this week, Woods told the media: ‘If everything comes together, I think I can get one more [Green Jacket].’
Woods has played fewer than five-and-a-half competitive rounds since undergoing ankle surgery in April last year, after withdrawing from the Masters during the third round.
He returned to action in the Hero World Challenge in December and completed all 72 holes, but was forced to withdraw from the Genesis Invitational in February due to illness after six holes of the second round. Last year, Woods had set his sights on playing one event per month.
‘I wasn’t ready to play,’ he admitted. ‘My body wasn’t ready, my game wasn’t ready, and I thought when I was at Hero that once a move was a very nice rhythm.
Woods was seen enjoying a practice round with world No 28 Justin Thomas on Tuesday
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He admits every shot not on the tee box is now a ‘challenge due to wear and tear on the body
But the 15-time major winner fancies his chances of getting his hands on another this week
‘It hasn’t worked out that way, but now we have major championships every month from here until July. So now hopefully the once a month kicks in.’
The 15-time major winner admits he’s still in no physical shape to play more than a handful of times a year. However, he says the ankle that was shattered in a 2021 car crash is not what troubles him these days.
‘The ankle doesn’t hurt anymore,’ Woods revealed. ‘It’s fused, it’s not going anywhere. So that’s fine. It’s other parts of my body that now have to take the brunt of it. So once they put the rods in there it’s good to go.
‘But the back, the knee and other parts of the body have to take the load of it. It’s just the endurance capability of walking for a long time and being on my feet for a long time.’
