In February 2021, golf legend Tiger Woods experienced a car crash that nearly cost him his life. Now, two years later, he continues to play the game.
Despite continuing to play with the leg injury that almost left him paralyzed, the golfer’s caddie recently agreed that Woods isn’t doing as well physically as he’d like to be. “Obviously it affected him physically, but I think it got to him mentally because he’s grinding to block out the pain,” said Joe LaCava.
“I think that messes with you a little bit upstairs, and that’s the first time I saw him trying so hard to block it out mentally,” the caddie continued. “He’s pretty banged up… If it wasn’t Augusta, he probably wouldn’t be playing … He still has the power, the swing speed, the shots, and the length to contend. The injury is devastating, but if he could take a cart he could contend tomorrow.”
Considering the way Woods performed at the Genesis Invitational in February, LaCava isn’t sure the weather in Georgia during the Augusta Masters this week will help out the veteran golfer. He explained, “I can’t imagine him trying to go 27-plus holes [in one day] around here.”
These sentiments were also on par with what Woods has said in the past. The golfer openly admits he isn’t in the condition he’d like to be, but he’s happy to still have a leg that belongs to him.
“Mobility, it’s not where I would like it, but it’s — as I sit here, I’ve said to you guys before, I’m very lucky to have this leg; it’s mine,” he shared, according to Golf Digest. “Yes, it had been altered and there’s some hardware in there, but it’s still mine. It has been tough and will always be tough.”
Tiger Woods discusses the 2023 Masters Tournament.
Woods added, “The ability and endurance of what my leg will do going forward will never be the same. I understand that. That’s why I can’t prepare and play as many tournaments as I like, but that’s my future, and that’s okay. I’m okay with that.”
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Considering his lack of practice and his physical restraints, Woods believes the only way he can compete at Augusta and succeed is due to his previous knowledge of the court.
He admitted, “Rummaging through the data bank and how to hit shots from each and every place and rehearsing it; that’s the only way that I can compete here. I don’t have the physical tournaments under my belt. I haven’t played that much, no. But if there’s any one golf course that I can come back, like I did last year, it’s here, just because I know the golf course.”
