WOUNDED TIGER
‘I don’t know if I’ll ever play again but my kids are more important’
PUttiNG one foot in front of the other is a massive step for tiger Woods right now but, while he struggles to walk the walk, talking the talk is easier than ever.
Woods, 40 later this month, ranked 400 in the world and with no idea whether he will ever swing a club in anger again, has spoken about his future, his relationship with ex-wife elin Nordegren, what he told his children about the break-up of his marriage and why he cannot bear to watch on television the game he ruled for so long.
it is more than three months and two back operations since Woods started a tournament and even longer since he showed interest in what his fellow pros were up to.
in an interview with TIME magazine, he said: ‘i can’t remember the last time i watched golf. i can’t stand it — unless one of my friends has a chance to win.
‘i watched Jason (Day) win the PGA but it was on mute. it’s always on mute and i have some other game on another tV.’
Day’s victory at Whistling straits came after Woods missed the cut for the third major in a row. it is more than seven years since he last won a big one to sit on 14 majors, four behind Jack Nicklaus’s record.
For so long the Golden bear’s magic number was the target, now it is just getting back on the course. Woods recently told reporters there was ‘no light at the end of the tun- nel’. ‘i walk. i walk and i walk some more,’ he said of his rehabilitation.
the American believes his body has paid for his mental toughness, for his willingness — and ability — to play through injury. He said: ‘When i enter a tournamentt my intent is to win, evenen though i’m banged up.p. that’s one of my problems, that i have had the ability to block pain.
‘ it’s made injuries worse. i’ve paid the price. i can still win, but along the way i’mm just doing damage.
‘i’ve learned. i knowow that, one, i don’t wantt to have another procedure.dure. And, two, even if i ddon’t’t playl again, i still want to have a quality of life with my kids. i started to lose that with the other surgeries.
‘the most important thing is that i get to have a life with my kids. that’s more important than golf.’
Woods can look back with honesty on his 2009 scandal, when it emerged he had had a string of affairs. He has been divorced from elin since 2010 but the pair are on good terms.
they married in 2004, with sam Alexis — named after tiger’s father — born in 2007 and Charlie Axel arriving in 2009.
Woods added: ‘As years have gone bby, we’re like best friends. We try and help each other out anand i’ve taken the initiative with the kids. i told them up front, “the reason why we’re not in the same house, why we don’t live under the same roof, Mommy and Daddy, is because Daddy made some mistakes”.
‘i want them to understand before they get to internet age and they log on to something or have their friends tell them something.’
Until then there’s another story to write, but whether it’s a fairytale return or an unhappy ending, Woods is ready.
‘i don’t want to stop playing golf,’ he said, ‘ but the flip side is, my kids’ lives are much more important. if i can do both, it’s a win-win. if i can only do one, it would be my kids. that’s still a win-win.’