The Courier & Advertiser (Angus and Dundee)
Too early the Hero for Woods
Tiger Woods believes the Hero World Challenge will be a low-scoring affair this week, despite his absence from the elite 20man field in the Bahamas.
Woods was due to return to action at Albany for the first time since missing the cut in the 150th Open Championship in July, but withdrew on Monday due to plantar fasciitis in his right foot.
The 15-time major winner also let slip in his Tuesday press conference that he had undergone “a couple of surgeries” this year as a result of competing again following a life-threatening car accident in February 2021, although he declined to reveal any details.
Woods still plans to partner Rory Mcilroy in The Match against Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas on December 10 and contest the PNC Championship with son Charlie the following week, but for now has to focus on hosting duties at an event which benefits his foundation.
“I’m looking forward to watching these guys play,” Woods said. “The golf course is in amazing shape. I went out and took a look at it and the golf course is running like it should.
“I think they’ll probably get the greens a little bit faster come tournament days, but other than that, there’s hardly any divots to deal with on the golf course so you’re going to see some low scores here.
“You can’t really hang around making too many pars, you’re going to get left behind. So this can be a nice birdie-fest and should be exciting for all the viewers.”
Norway’s Viktor Hovland will defend the title he won on his tournament debut last year, with Masters champion Scottie Scheffler, US Open winner Matt Fitzpatrick, US PGA champion Justin Thomas and world No. 5 Jon Rahm also in the field.
World number 16 Max Homa was paired with Woods in the first two rounds of the Open at St Andrews.
Homa, who is making his tournament debut this week, said: “It’s still cool. My friend who’s with me asked me if it’s still weird being around Tiger and I would say yes. It’s definitely different.
“This event used to be in my backyard in LA, so we would go (to watch) every year.”
Meanwhile, the LIV Golf League will stage events in Spain, Mexico and Singapore next year, all at venues regularly used by the PGA Tour or DP World Tour.
The Spanish event will be held from June 30 to July 2 at Valderrama, which hosted the 1997 Ryder Cup, two WGC events and numerous tournaments on the DP World Tour, most recently in October.
Adrian Otaegui, who successfully challenged sanctions imposed by the DP World Tour for competing in LIV Golf events, cruised to a six-shot victory in the Andalucia Masters with a tournamentrecord total of 19 under par.
Mayakoba’s El Camaleon Golf Course (February 2426) and Sentosa Golf Club in Singapore (April 28-30) join the Grange Golf Club in Adelaide (April 21-23) on the expanded schedule of 14 LIV events.
El Camaleon has hosted a PGA Tour event since 2007, while Ian Poulter and Sergio Garcia are among the winners of the Singapore Open at Sentosa.
LIV Golf CEO Greg Norman said: These destinations for the league’s 2023 launch showcase our commitment to tournament play at the highest level. These venues have played host to signature moments in golf.”
● Former Masters champion Mike Weir will captain the International Team in the 2024 Presidents Cup at Royal Montreal Golf Club in his native Canada.
Weir played in the biennial contest against the United States five times, most notably beating Tiger Woods in their singles match at Royal Montreal in 2007.
The International Team has won just one of the 14 Presidents Cups staged to date.