Tiger Woods went home at the weekend for the third consecutive Major at the 2024 Open, posing the question of whether he still has the physical strength and desire to shake off the rust and get his game back to the top.
Woods' golf has been poor by his extremely high standards this year and he's now going to take four months off before returning at the Hero World Challenge and PNC Championship in December.
"I'd like to have played more, but I just wanted to make sure that I was able to play the Major championships this year. I got a lot of time off to get better, to be better physically, which has been the case all year," Woods said after 36-holes at Royal Troon, where he finished at 14-over-par.
"I've gotten better, even though my results really haven't shown it, but physically I've gotten better, which is great. I just need to keep progressing like that and then eventually start playing more competitively and start getting into kind of the competitive flow again."
So what will Woods' 2025 Major season look like? Five Golf Monthly writers have their say...
Tiger Woods' 2025 Major season will probably look very similar to this year.
As I understand it, his body is only strong enough to play five events a year. Unless that changes, he won't contend in another Major. Every time you watch him, he's so clearly lacking match fitness – he makes so many unforced errors and his touch on the greens has been horrendous at times.
But, as much as I want him to call it a day, he's not going to. I can see him making another Masters cut, but I'd be surprised if he played the weekend at any of the other three Majors.
Very similar to 2024, I would imagine, unless he increases his competitive playing commitments and signs up for a couple of outings in the run-up to The Masters.
In between the three remaining Majors, Woods might well benefit from an additional tournament, too. He keeps saying he's rusty, and and should be but with what everyone hopes to be an injury-free period now, a healthier Tiger should be capable of doing a little more.
Should that be the case, a couple more made cuts could be achieved and possibly even a top-25...
No one can predict what 2025 will look like for Woods. Sure, he’s been patched up, but if feels like he’s just one twinge away from another spell on the sidelines.
Deep down he must know that he can’t compete for titles with such a limited schedule, but can he really up his workload and not risk another injury?
Let’s say he can, and he can add a few tournaments in around the Majors. Will it really make that much of a difference?
He’s never going to be the player he was again – the body just won’t allow it. The putting stroke doesn’t look as reliable as it was, either.
Sadly, I predict more of the same in 2025: moments of brilliance coupled with a lot of rusty stuff. I’d honestly be shocked if he made a Major top-10 ever again. I hope I’m wrong.
Tiger’s caught between a rock and a hard place as he’s not playing enough to get sharp for the Majors but playing more could risk more injury setbacks.
I do think he’s slowly improving physically and he’ll try and play more next year, at Riviera in February and then The Players in March would be a better lead-in to Augusta and the other three Majors.
Performance-wise I’d expect something similar to this year, make the cut at the Masters then struggle at the PGA and US Open, but if conditions are decent at then I can see him making the weekend at Portrush – if he’s on the right side of the draw.
After all those doubters above, I've got something positive for you Tiger fans.
It's very easy to write Tiger Woods off after his 2024 Major season - but the fact that he has even played in all four of them is a positive. If you told me that at the end of last year, I'd be pleasantly surprised - even though his plan was to play every month.
Woods has looked so much better physically since his ankle fusion surgery and he has ten Major rounds under his belt. If he can stay fit and keep improving his mobility, he should be able to play more next year.
Remember to never, ever write Tiger Woods off.
He'll be 49 next year, which is still a year younger than Phil Mickelson when he won the 2021 PGA Championship. It's also ten years younger than Tom Watson was when he had a putt to win the 2009 Open at Turnberry.
He still believes he can beat the world's best. He's still going to work as hard as he physically can to do so. Yes, his putting has been woeful this year - truly the worst I can ever remember seeing him putt - but he can sort that out.
I think Woods will make a run at winning a Major next year and pick up his 83rd PGA Tour win - call it a re-run of his 2018 season where he challenged for the PGA Championship at Bellerive and won the Tour Championship.
2025 is going to set up his 16th Major win at the 2026 Masters, where he matches Jack Nicklaus (in terms of Masters triumphs) and wins his sixth Green Jacket at the age of 50. He's the greatest of all time and he still has another moment left in him.
Call me a dreamer, but that's what Tiger Woods does to me.
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