Woods focused on St. Andrews

The British Open is scheduled for Royal Liverpool, Royal Troon and Royal Portrush over the next three years. The Old Course at St. Andrews typically is used every five years.

That adds to the perspective of Tiger Woods playing this year.

When he said Tuesday that “this is a pretty historic Open,” Woods just as well could have been talking about himself as the 150th anniversary of golf’s oldest championship.

“I’m lucky enough to be part of the past champions that have won there, and want to play there again, and I don’t know when they are ever going to go back while I’m still able to play at a high level,” Woods said at the J.P. McManus Pro-Am in Ireland. “I want to be able to give it at least one more run at a high level.”

Woods won in 2000 by eight shots to complete the career Grand Slam at age 24. He won again in 2005 to complete a different kind of slam. Each time Jack Nicklaus played a major for the last time, Woods won.

He is 46 and still walking gingerly at times from his right leg and ankle being pieced back together following his February 2021 car crash outside of Los Angeles.

Woods returned to play the Masters and PGA Championship, both times making the cut, though he withdrew after the third round at Southern Hills. He skipped the U.S. Open, though not necessarily by choice.

“The plan was to play the U.S. Open, but physically I was not able to do that,” Woods said at Adare Manor. “There’s no way physically I could have done that. I had some issues with my leg and it would have put this tournament in jeopardy, and so there’s no reason to do that.”

That he is even playing is remarkable considering the nature of his injuries, particularly the threat of having part of his leg amputated, which doctors were able to avoid.

He has no idea how much longer he can play, or at least compete. Woods is unlikely to tee it up after the British Open until December, either at his Hero World Challenge in the Bahamas or what has become his fifth major, the PNC Championship with son Charlie.

“If you asked me last year whether I would play golf again, all of my surgeons would have said, ‘No,’” Woods said. “Now if you say, ‘Play at a championship level,’ well, that window is definitely not as long as I would like it to be.”

PAIRINGS PARTY

Branden Grace of South Africa, coming off a $4 million prize from winning the LIV Golf event in Oregon, was among those with LIV contracts who were added to the Scottish Open field. He joins Ian Poulter, Adrian Otaegui and Justin Harding, who won a temporary stay from European tour suspensions.

Will that lead to awkward moments? Not really. The European tour put Harding and Otaegui as a twosome in the first tee time of the tournament, which starts Thursday. Poulter and Grace play as a twosome in the first group out Thursday afternoon.

As for awkward, that might be found in the group of Collin Morikawa, Matt Fitzpatrick and Will Zalatoris. It was only a few weeks ago when Zalatoris played with Fitzpatrick in the final group at Brookline and missed a 15-foot putt on the last hole to finish one behind.

OPEN RAILING

The grand celebration of the 150th anniversary of the British Open coincides with a dispute between ScotRail and ASLEF, the union for train drivers.