Woods withdrawal casts a Major doubt on his future

TIGER WOODS departed Oklahoma to an uncertain future after the first withdrawal of his Major championship career as a professional.

For one of the most mentally strong and stubborn sportsmen of all time to throw in the towel before the final bell at the US PGA speaks volumes for the pain he is enduring 15 months on from the car crash that wrecked his right leg.

The US Open, the next event on Woods’ intended Major roadshow, starts on June 16 at Brookline. Whether Woods will be there must be open to doubt.

The experience was a sobering one for him and his comeback plans. It was not so much the round of golf that did for him, testing though the Southern Hills walk was on an unseasonably cold Saturday, but everything else that he now needs to go through to be able to swing a club competitively.

The ice baths and the intense physiotherapy before and after practice sessions and rounds all took their toll.

Six-time Major champion Nick Faldo, right, said: “It’s probably a 12-hour day for him to prepare his body and go and play.

“Physically and mentally it’s a brutal effort every day. It’s the pain as well. That is tough mentally to take. A guy digging into your body to get you ready – I can promise you that gets old very quickly.” Woods’ wishful pretournament thinking that he would be stronger at Southern Hills six weeks on from The Masters proved to be exactly that. The Augusta pattern was repeated with an heroic effort to make the cut followed by a grim weekend unravelling as the exertions caught up with him. Woods’ third-round 79 made for uncomfortable viewing for the thousands who had headed to the course early to catch a glimpse of greatness. His playing partner Shaun Norris said: “It’s very hard to see a guy with so much talent and skill have to struggle like that. You really feel sorry for him.’’ Woods will take some time out to recover before deciding whether to play next month at Brookline. Beyond that in July lies the two-day JP McManus Pro-Am at Adare Manor in Ireland and The Open at St Andrews. Woods will move heaven and earth to be there at the Home of Golf. But the events of Southern Hills make you wonder whether he will take the hint from his battered body and choose the Swilken Bridge as the setting to wave goodbye to the game he changed forever.