The legendary golfer has already won five Green Jackets and intends to compete for his sixth just 14 months after a near-fatal accident.
Tiger Woods is planning to play in the Masters Tournament, he said Tuesday morning in a stunning announcement. “As of right now, I feel like I am going to play,” Woods said in a statement to the press. “As of right now.”
His decision to compete for a green jacket in the world’s most prestigious golf tournament, which he has won five times previously, comes just 14 months after he nearly lost his life in a horrific car accident.
Doctors at the time even considered amputating his right leg.
“It has been a tough, tough year,” Woods said.
All week long, crowds have been following Woods as he practiced his game at Augusta National, the golf club the Masters will be held at later this week.
“I’ve been very lucky to have great surgeons, great [physical therapists], that have worked on me virtually every day and we worked hard to get to this point,” he said in a statement.
Dr. Andrew Feldman is an orthopedic surgeon in New York, and told Inside Edition that one of the main concerns is that playing the Masters requires stamina. The walk around the course alone is more than four miles.
“It’s the recovery,” Woods speculated. “How am I going to get all the swelling out, and recover for the next day.”
Golf Digest’s Dan Rapaport says Woods’ announcement is one for the history books. “He looks pretty much perfectly normal when he’s swinging the club,” he said. “He’s careful if there’s any elevation and he uses the club as a cane sometimes.”
Last December Woods played in a tournament with his son Charlie, charming the nation with their matching outfits. They came in second place.
There was also a tender moment in March when his daughter, Sam Alexis, inducted him into the World Golf Hall of Fame.
