Woods to tee off at Farmers Open

Tiger Woods said last week that he wants to play a full schedule in 2018 — and he’s off to a promising start. Woods announced on Thursday that he plans to open the season at the Farmers Insurance Open later this month before playing at the Genesis Open in February. The 42-year-old has won the Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines eight times, most recently in 2013. The course hosted the 2008 U.S. Open, which is the most recent of Woods’ 14 major championships. The tournament, which takes place near San Diego, begins on Jan. 25. The Genesis Open runs from Feb. 15-18 at the Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades, Calif. Woods returned to competitive golf last month after a 10-month absence following his most recent back surgery and a DUI arrest. He at one point led the Hero World Challenge in the Bahamas but ultimately finished in a tie for ninth while shooting 8-under for the tournament.

Woods said he’s looking forward to returning to the Riviera, where he made his PGA Tour debut as a 16-year-old amateur in 1992. He hasn’t played there since 2006, though it is now back in play because the Tiger Woods Foundation runs the tournament.

“I’m very excited to be back at Riviera,” he said in a statement. “I haven’t played at Riviera in a tournament in a very long time. To be able to play in an event that I used to come to as an amateur, as a junior and now as the tournament host, that is on one of the most historic sites in all of golf, it’s a dream come true.”

Woods missed the cut at Torrey Pines last year and withdrew from the 2017 Genesis Open due to back spasms. But he recently said he’s now hitting the ball more than a full-club longer than he was before his last surgery.

Woods has not played all four majors since 2015 — he missed the cut in three of them — because of his back injuries. He has not made the cut in all four majors since 2013. — Staff and wire report