Is Tiger Woods playing in the 153rd Open Championship at Royal Portrush in the final major of the year? Golf fans are wondering whether the 15-time major champion will feature at The Open 2025 after his latest injury setback.
Woods has recently undergone surgery on a ruptured Achilles, casting serious doubt on his chances of featuring at Royal Portrush in the fourth and final major championship of the year.
Is Tiger Woods Playing At The Open 2025?
With the 153rd Open Championship at Royal Portrush almost upon us, golf fans are getting excited. The Open 2025 takes centre-stage in the fourth and final major championship of the year in mid-July, with all of the world’s best golfers set to compete for major glory come Sunday, 20th July.
This includes the likes of three-time major champion Scottie Scheffler, defending Open champion Xander Schauffele, Bryson DeChambeau and of course Rory McIlroy who recently completed the career Grand Slam at The Masters at Augusta this year.
One man who definitely won’t be teeing it up at the 153rd Open Championship is Tiger Woods. The 15-time major champion is yet to feature on the PGA Tour this season, and is now set to miss the last major of the year too following his latest injury setback.
This comes as no surprise after the American golf star has missed The Masters, PGA Championship and the US Open too, meaning he is yet to compete in a major tournament this calendar year. It is now official that Wood won’t feature in any majors at all in 2025.
There was some talk that Woods might even play at The Players Championship, but that wasn’t the case either. Now, it looks like the five-times Masters champion and three-time Claret Jug winner could be on the sidelines for even longer after rupturing his Achilles.
Tiger Woods Injury Update Following Ruptured Achilles
Although Tiger Woods has been recovering from his Achilles injury for around four months now, he remains side-lined for the foreseeable future.
In a statement posted on social media back in March, Woods, who reached billionaire status thanks to his incredible net worth, said:
“As I began to ramp up my own training and practice at home, I felt a sharp pain in my left Achilles, which was deemed to be ruptured.
“This morning, Dr Charlton Stucken of Hospital for Special Surgery in West Palm Beach, Florida performed a minimally-invasive Achilles tendon repair for a ruptured tendon.
“I am back home now and plan to focus on my recovery and rehab, thank you for all the support,” the statement concluded.
As I began to ramp up my own training and practice at home, I felt a sharp pain in my left Achilles, which was deemed to be ruptured.
This morning, Dr. Charlton Stucken of Hospital for Special Surgery in West Palm Beach, Florida performed a minimally-invasive Achilles tendon… pic.twitter.com/KAVZfcRxlE
— Tiger Woods (@TigerWoods) March 11, 2025
Although this statement from Woods regarding his latest injury setback doesn’t mention any tournament specifically, it seems highly improbable that the golfing superstar will feature in a professional golf tournament this year at all.
Woods’ career has been blighted with injuries, particularly in the last decade. The 49-year-old has had a tough time with injuries throughout his career, with the latest now almost certainly forcing him to miss the remainder of the season.
The American was already beginning to limit the amount of tournaments he competed in anyway, with the four majors seemingly his only focus. Now though, even competing in one major this year looks like it could be a bridge too far for the golfing great.
It looks like the 82-time PGA Tour winner will be watching The Open 2025 from the sidelines. Not only is this a huge blow to Tiger Woods himself, but also to golf fans hoping to watch the great man tee it up at Royal Portrush.
Tiger Woods Confirmed He WOULDN’T Be Playing At The Masters With April Fools Day Post
Although golf fans were 99% sure Tiger Woods wouldn’t be playing in The Masters earlier this year, official confirmation from the 15-time major champion himself never actually came. That was until April Fools Day.
In the spirit of April Fools, Tiger took to social media with a statement saying that he was fit and ready to compete at Augusta National Golf Club in a bid to win his sixth Green Jacket.
However, less than an hour later Woods confirmed that the statement was indeed an April Fools Day joke, and that he wouldn’t be fit in time for The Masters. Woods’ first social media post read:
“I can’t believe I am saying this, but a few weeks after rupturing my left Achilles, the sleeping in a hyperbaric chamber plus the explosive lifts my doctors and trainers have me ready to play the Masters next week! Can’t wait! Se y’all on the course.”
He then followed this up by confirming he was still injured and wouldn’t be teeing it up at Augusta: “P.S. April Fools my Achilles is still a mess :)”
This meant that the Tiger Woods new girlfriend Vanessa Trump and he are able to spend more time together whilst the golfing legend recovers from injury.
Well played, Tiger. 😂 pic.twitter.com/nmSbMdVIYP
— Golf Digest (@GolfDigest) April 1, 2025
When Will Tiger Woods Next Play Competitive Golf?
Tiger Woods’ career has been blighted with injuries, particularly in the last decade. The 49-year-old has had a tough time with injuries throughout his career, with the latest now almost certainly forcing him to miss the majority of the year.
With that in mind, fans are beginning to wonder if they’ll ever actually see the 15-time major champion compete in a professional golf tournament ever again.
There has been no official confirmation from Woods himself or his team as to when he will be able to return to the course.
However, there is a chance Woods will tee it up with his son Charlie at the PNC Championship in December.
This should give him ample time to rest and recover from his Achilles injury, whilst being able to begin practice again before a possible December return with his son.
The PNC Championship is a family event over 36-holes, where golf carts are also allowed. This makes it fairly likely that Woods will indeed return to competitive golf action before the year is out.
Will Tiger Woods’ Injury Setbacks Result In Golf Retirement Soon?
Some golf fans and respected figures in the sport have alluded to the fact that at this stage it could be worth Tiger Woods calling it quits for good.
At almost 50-years-old, Woods is one of the oldest players on the PGA Tour. The majority of players are in their 20s and 30s, never mind almost 50.
Although age is just a number and both he and Phil Mickelson, who is chasing the career Grand Slam at the US Open, both won majors well into their 40s, retirement has been mentioned regarding Woods recently.
At the end of the day, it will be Woods who makes the decision. Nobody else. Whether Tiger Woods retires or not remains to be seen. The majority of fans seem to think he has another couple years in him yet, provided he doesn’t suffer any more injury setbacks.
Fingers crossed the great man recovers as quickly as possible from his latest injury setback and returns to the golf course at some stage in 2025 and begins competing properly again in the new year.
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