Tiger Woods will be back on the course on Monday after withdrawing from the Genesis Invitational, but he is yet to confirm his next PGA Tour outing.
Tiger Woods is set to make his comeback to tournament play at the Seminole Pro-Member event at Seminole Golf Club in Juno Beach, Florida.
This exclusive event boasts a field that is considered to be even stronger than the Cognizant Classic happening nearby in Palm Beach Gardens. Woods will be paired with Seth Waugh, a prominent critic of LIV Golf.
The tee time for Woods is at 7.47am ET, where he will be playing alongside his good friend Justin Thomas and tech billionaire Mike Walrath. This marks Woods’ return to competitive golf following his withdrawal from the Genesis Invitational due to illness.
It was a cause for concern among fans when Woods withdrew from his second round due to health issues, initially thought to be related to his previous ankle and back injuries. However, it was later revealed that he was actually suffering from the flu and received treatment at the clubhouse before being discharged.
There is uncertainty surrounding Woods’ participation in the upcoming Arnold Palmer Invitational. This tournament at Bay Hill holds significant historical value in the PGA Tour, especially for Woods who has won it a record eight times. As of now, Woods has not confirmed whether he will compete, and it appears probable that he will not return to the tour until The Players at TPC Sawgrass in March.
The Seminole Pro-Member event has been famously described by Davis Love III as “the first major of the year”, attracting numerous top professionals, businessmen, PGA Tour officials, and celebrities to one of America’s premier courses. The reigning champions are Goldman Sachs executive Mark Flaherty and world number six Patrick Cantlay.
Rory McIlroy, accompanied by his father Gerry, is participating in the tournament alongside NFL legend Tom Brady, who is paired with Tony Finau. Other notable PGA Tour stars such as Rickie Fowler, Matt Fitzpatrick, Collin Morikawa, and Padraig Harrington are also involved in the event.
It is worth mentioning that no LIV Golf players are taking part in this tournament. The decision was made by Jimmy Dunne, an investment banker and president of Seminole Golf Club, who serves as an independent director on the PGA Tour policy board. His role includes preventing players from leaving for LIV and facilitating the potential merger between the PGA Tour and LIV’s supporters, the Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund.
Additionally, Woods’ playing partner, Waugh, is the CEO of the Professional Golfers’ Association of America, which organizes the PGA Championship. Waugh has been vocal in his criticism of LIV since its establishment in 2022.
He informed The Times in the previous year that “[The PIF] has the capability to finance it indefinitely.” However, regardless of the abundance of funds, there comes a time when squandering it becomes unsatisfactory. I fail to perceive any significant achievements on their part.
“I believe that division within the game is detrimental. Hopefully, it benefits those individuals who have made their respective choices, but the game has progressed. It has magnified the presence of those who have remained, while those who have departed have mostly vanished from the scene in terms of visibility.”
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