Woods is currently automatically qualified for three of this year’s four Majors

Tiger Woods plans to continue playing at the highest level this year despite a sixth back surgery in September and the admission in December that his game is nowhere near sharp enough to compete with the best.

Fast forward a couple of months and the shape of Woods’ game has clearly improved after he committed to the Genesis Invitational, before withdrawing due to the emotional toil of his mother’s recent death.

The 15-time Major winner may look to get some competitive rounds under his belt pre-Masters at either the Arnold Palmer Invitational or The Players Championship, or simply turn up to Augusta for his first tournament of the year.

So, which of the four Majors is Tiger Woods’ eligible for in 2025?

The 49-year-old is still eligible for three of this year’s four biggest events due to the incredible success he’s had over the past 25+ years, where he won 15 Majors.

He is in The Masters for life after winning the Green Jacket five times in 1997, 2001, 2002, 2005 and 2019.

Woods is synonymous with Augusta and has made the cut in The Masters 23 consecutive times, which matches Gary Player and Fred Couples’ record. If he makes the weekend this April, he will stand alone at the top of the consecutive cuts leaderboard with an incredible 24.

All being well, the Californian will then head to Quail Hollow a month later for the PGA Championship, which is another of the Majors that he is in for life. The PGA Championship extends lifetime exemptions to its past champions, which is why the likes of Rich Beem, Shaun Micheel, Padraig Harrington, YE Yang, Martin Kaymer and Jason Dufner still tee it up in the Major.

Woods is a four-time PGA Championship winner, triumphing in 1999, 2000, 2006 and 2007.

Woods will then be eyeing up a tee time at Oakmont in June for the US Open, but that is an event he’ll have to qualify for or, most likely, rely on an invitation.

US Open winners only get a 10-year exemption after winning the trophy. Woods won in 2008 and it ran out in 2019, but his Masters victory then got him into the field for the 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023 championships.

Tiger Woods heard his longtime friend and business partner Rob McNamara say “99 yards,” and so the 15-time major winner immediately and instinctively pulled out a pitching wedge Tuesday night during TGL action. Woods even confirmed the number a second time with McNamara before setting up for his swing. He probably should have asked again.

Soon enough, his Jupiter Links Golf Club teammates wondered aloud from the sideline ‒ but too late and not loud enough for Woods to hear ‒ why one of the greatest golfers of all-time was using a club that wouldn’t get Woods near the 199 yards he needed to reach the hole.

What followed was a shot that traveled 100 yards, falling well short of the green as part of the match between Jupiter Links match and the New York Golf Club. Woods had been told “99” because it was perceived to be obvious the caddie was dropping a number and meant “199” yards. Obvious to everyone but Woods, who wound up losing the 13th hole to Cameron Young.

“I heard 99 yards. I didn’t know it was 199,” he explained and then called it “one of the most embarrassing moments in my golfing career.”

Kim and fellow Jupiter Links teammate Kevin Kisner each got a good laugh at Woods’ expense as everybody involved realized the miscommunication that had occurred. Woods was playing for the first time since the death of his mother, Kultida Woods. The New York Golf Club team of Rickie Fowler, Matt Fitzpatrick and Young wound up winning the match over Jupiter Links, 10-3, on Tuesday.

Asked what they learned from the match during a news conference afterwards, Kim and Kisner deferred to Woods and the mishap that overshadowed the result.

“I had 99 yards. I hit a 100-yard wedge shot,” Woods said with a sheepish smile and a chuckle. “That was one of the most embarrassing things … I can’t believe that just happened.”

It’s still unclear when Woods will make his 2025 PGA Tour debut after he withdrew from last week’s Genesis Invitational following his mother’s death. He is scheduled to play for Jupiter Links again on Tuesday, Feb. 25 at the SoFi Center in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida.

Tiger Woods and PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan are part of a White House meeting that signals more progress in getting a deal done with the Saudi backers of LIV Golf

Tiger Woods joined PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan and player director Adam Scott in a second White House meeting on Thursday, another sign the sport is moving rapidly toward ending the division brought on by Saudi-funded LIV Golf.

Yasir Al-Rumayyan, governor of the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia and the financial muscle behind the rival league, was scheduled to join the meeting, according to a person briefed on the meeting.

The person, speaking on condition of anonymity because the meeting is private, said President Donald Trump initiated the meeting and was likely to be part of it.

Al-Rumayyan was in Miami Beach, Florida, on Wednesday to attend an investment summit where Trump spoke.

This is the second time in just over two weeks the PGA Tour leadership — Woods and Scott are on the board — has met at the White House. Woods had to leave before the Feb. 4 meeting because his mother died in Florida.

He said Sunday during the CBS broadcast of the Genesis Invitational that “we have another meeting coming up.”

“I think that things are going to heal quickly,” Woods, the tournament host, said on the broadcast. “We’re going to get this game going in the right direction. It’s been heading in the wrong direction for a number of years and the fans want all of us to play together, all the top players playing together, and we’re going to make that happen.”

LIV Golf launched in June 2022 and lured away several top names — Brooks Koepka, Dustin Johnson, Bryson DeChambeau and Jon Rahm — over the next few years with signing bonuses reported to top $100 million in some cases.

Tiger Woods left stunned after TGL mix-up: ‘One of the most embarrassing moments in my career’

Woods made an error which his choice of club after a yardage blunder as Jupiter Links Golf Club suffered a heavy defeat

Tiger Woods suffered “one of the most embarrassing moments” of his long career after a yardage blunder proved costly in his latest outing at TGL.

The indoor league, launched by Woods and Rory McIlroy earlier this year, sees players hit their shots into a giant simulator before chipping and putting around a constructed green.

Having hit the fairway with his drive on the 13th hole, veteran Woods retrieved a wedge to play what he thought was a 99-yard approach onto the putting surface.

However the 49-year-old was misinformed of the distance remaining, with the figure actually 199 yards. His shot thus came up some distance short, prompting a confused Woods to question what had happened.

“You said 99?” Woods asked of his Jupiter Links Golf Club teammates as Kevin Kisner and Tom Kim burst into laughter.

Woods lost the hole to Cameron Young as a strong New York team that also included Rickie Fowler and Matt Fitzpatrick surged to a dominant 10-3 victory.

“One of the most embarrassing moments in my golfing career just happened,” Woods admitted to ESPN aftewards. “I just screwed up. That was embarrassing.”

The 15-time major champion was playing for the first time since the passing of his mother, Kultida, who had attended her final golf event as Woods played in the TGL at SoFi Center on 27 January.

Woods pulled out of the Genesis Invitational at Torrey Pines last week and explained on Sunday at the PGA Tour event that he was appreciative for all of the support he had received.

“[It is a ] tough process to go through, but I’ve had amazing family support,” Woods said. “All the players have reached out that were playing here this week. The amount of texts and emails and nice messages of support I got has really helped and has really meant a lot to me.”

Tiger Woods cracked a smile. After about a minute or so in his first public appearance since his mother’s death, on national TV, he’d been asked about car rides, after all.

Yes, he’d talk about this. Before Tiger Woods was Tiger Woods, he was Tiger Woods, junior golfer in a passenger seat, and Tida Woods was at the wheel. Dad, he said, worked. So mom taxied him up and down So Cal.

At this point, he lit up a bit.

Tida was also a statistician. Meticulous, too.

“She would drive out there,” Woods said, “and keep score, walk every hole and how many putts I hit, how many fairways I hit, how many greens I hit.”

“Tracked it all?” announcer Jim Nantz asked.

“She tracked it all,” Woods said. “Gosh, all those days led us to the point where — and she was — oh, man, she was hard on me about school, about getting good grades and doing well in school. To be honest with you, if I didn’t get any homework done, I wasn’t allowed to go play. Not with my friends, just go play in general. It was important that I got good grades, and school came first before any sport I was playing.

“She meant everything to me. Losing her has been a very hard and difficult process to go through.”

Ahead of the visit in the CBS booth that overlooked the 18th green at Torrey Pines, you’d maybe wondered how this would go. Tida Woods died 12 days ago, he announced over his social media channels, and after originally committing to play in this week’s Genesis Invitational, the tournament he hosts, he soon withdrew, before reappearing Sunday. What would we hear, then, during his TV time? What would we see? How long would he talk?

About a half-hour. And a story about numbers, from a man who works in yards, started things. Like mother, like son.

“Yeah, it’s been a tough process to go through,” Woods said, “but I’ve had amazing family support. All the players have reached out that were playing here this week. The amount of texts and the emails and nice messages of support I got has really helped and has really meant a lot to me.”

Below are other items from his time on the broadcast.

The pro Tiger Woods’ dad told young Tiger to watch 

Woods said his first visit to a PGA Tour tournament came at Torrey, for the “Andy Williams” (Williams was once the host of the now-named Farmers Insurance Open) — and it led to a question of whom he followed. His answer?

“There’s one guy that my dad said you’ve got to watch him hit a golf ball,” Woods said. “It was a 1-iron, it was on the last hole, it was Andy Bean. This was the first time I ever came to a Tour event and then the second event I ever went to was at Riv.”

A deal between the PGA Tour and the Saudi Arabia PIF? ‘We’re in a very positive place’

Woods said “we’re in a very positive place” in talking about the negotiations on a funding deal between the Tour and the Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund. The PIF also funds LIV Golf, and a potential agreement could bring together players on both tours.

Earlier in the week, following a meeting with President Donald Trump, PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan said that negotiations on the deal were progressing.

“I think we’re in a very positive place right now,” Woods said. “We had a meeting with the president. Unfortunately, I had some other circumstances that came up, but Jay and Adam [Scott, a fellow pro], they did great during the meeting, and we have another subsequent meeting coming up.

“I think that things are going to heal quickly. We’re going to get this game going in the right direction. It’s been heading in the wrong direction for a number of years ,and the fans want all of us to play together, all the top players playing together, and we’re going to make that happen.”

Said Nantz: “I know there’s so many things that have to be figured out, but it could be this year or it could be very soon this year, sounds like.”

Said Woods: “Yes. Yes and yes.”

Scottie Scheffler game? ‘Mundane’

While watching Scottie Scheffler, the pro who put together a Woodsian year in 2024, Woods offered this:

“Yeah, Scottie, the way he plays, it’s very mundane. He’s got a lot of footwork, but he knows how to score.”

Ludvig Aberg’s game? ‘Not a whole lot can go wrong’

While watching Ludvig Aberg, the eventual winner of the Genesis, Woods offered this:

“Yeah, Ludvig’s swing really not a whole lot can go wrong with it. Occasionally he might speed up a little bit and kind of get stuck under it, but other than that, I mean, he hits this tight little draw. Beautiful game. And on top of that, super nice guy.”

His own game? 

After being asked by Nantz about his own goals for this year, Woods offered this:

“My goal is to play more and I haven’t played. I got to work on that. This process was unexpected. I’ll get back after it and look forward to playing some big events.”

The other sites that were considered for the Genesis? A few 

The Genesis, typically played at Riviera Country Club in Los Angeles, was moved to Torrey in San Diego due to L.A.’s wildfires. Woods said other sites were considered.

“It was looking like we could go back up to Monterey or we could go to Las Vegas or we could go to Phoenix or Palm Springs or we could come here,” Woods said. “I wanted to keep the event at an iconic venue. Riviera’s iconic. It was iconic to me when I first played there, it was the first tournament on the PGA Tour I ever played.

“And I think this golf course is iconic.”

Tiger Woods, TV analyst?

His time in the broadcast booth ended with an exchange among Nantz, Woods and analyst Trevor Immelman.

Said Nantz of Woods: “I’ll tell you what, he’s a pretty good analyst, too.”

Said Immelman: “Ah, ah, ah, careful.”

Said Nantz: “I’m sorry. That wasn’t …”

Said Immelman: “I mean, I like him, but come on.”

Said Woods: “I’ll stick to my day job.”

‘She meant everything to me’: Tiger Woods speaks publicly for first time since mother’s passing

Kultida Woods is being memorialized this week by the Genesis Invitational, the tournament her son, Tiger Woods, hosts, and there is symbolism in the move.

Nine days after her death was announced, the PGA Tour said Thursday a white flag will be used on Torrey Pines’ seventh hole over the tournament’s four days, and both the color and the number honor Kultida Woods’ Buddhist faith. According to a Tour release, the color white symbolizes purity, wisdom and longevity, while the number seven is tied to seven factors of enlightenment.

Woods’ death was announced publicly last Tuesday in a social media release. Tiger Woods had initially entered the Genesis Invitational, then withdrew on Monday, three days before the tournament’s start.

“I planned to tee it up this week, but I’m just not ready,” Woods wrote on social media in announcing his withdrawal. “I did my best to prepare, knowing it’s what my Mom would have wanted, but I’m still processing her loss.

“Thanks to everyone who has reached out. I hope to be at Torrey later in the week and appreciate the continued kindness since my Mom’s passing.”

Last week, in announcing her death, the 15-time major winner had written this:

“It is with heartfelt sadness that I want to share that my dear mother, Kultida Woods, passed away early this morning. My Mom was a force of nature all her own, her spirit was simply undeniable. She was quick with the needle and a laugh. She was my biggest fan, greatest supporter, without her none of my personal achievements would have been possible. She was loved by so many,  but especially by her two grandchildren, Sam and Charlie. Thank you all for your support, prayers and privacy at this difficult time for me and my family. Love you Mom.”

In his pre-tournament press conference on Wednesday, Rory McIlroy was sympathetic to Woods after hearing he wouldn’t play this week.

“Very understandable,” McIlroy said. “He’s had a lot go on in his life unfortunately over the last couple of weeks. Yeah, I just think with his mom passing and then everything that he needs to go through to get ready to play a tournament, yeah, look, it’s unfortunate that he’s not here and with us, but ultimately it’s obviously the right call.”

To read more on Kultida Woods, please click here or scroll immediately below for a story written by GOLF’s Michael Bamberger headlined “Tiger Woods’ mother had a singular focus: raising a world-beating son.”

Most of us cannot readily name Big Jack’s mother. Helen Nicklaus died on the eve of the 2000 PGA Championship at Valhalla, a course her son designed. Fewer yet can name Young Tom’s mother, Agnes Morris, who died in 1876, the year her husband, Old Tom, had a ho-hum T4 finish at the Open Championship on the Old Course, where he was the greenkeeper. But everyone in golf knows Tiger’s mother, Tida. The most famous mother in golf.

She was Kultida Punsawad Woods on her legal documents but wherever she went in this world, over the course of her remarkable, globe-crossing 78 years, she was Tida. Tida Woods died Tuesday; Tiger did not disclose a cause. In a statement, Tiger referred to her as my dear mother and Mom. But when he received the Bob Jones Award, the USGA’s highest honor, at the U.S. Open in Pinehurst last year, Woods called her Mommy. She was right there in the first row, alongside her only two grandchildren, Sam, and her kid brother, Charlie.

Tida was always in the first row. She was short, feisty, direct, strong in every way, and if you were in her way, watch out. She was in the first row when Woods made that painful public apology in a ballroom in the clubhouse at the TPC Sawgrass in 2010. She was in the first row, right behind the 18th green, when Tiger won his first Masters in 1997. She was in the first row when Tiger was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2022. She had one husband (Earl), one child (Eldrick) and seemingly one purpose, to raise a take-no-prisoners son.

Tiger grew up in a tidy suburban house in Cypress, Calif., choking with cigarette smoke (his father) and the smells of Thai cooking (his mother). Inside, the house was not like the others in their development. Tiger has said it a thousand times: his father, the former lieutenant colonel, was a softie. His mother packed heat. In the 1970s and 1980s, she drove Tiger in her Plymouth Duster to junior golf tournaments all over Southern California, and she wasn’t there to make friends. She was there to watch her son hoist trophies, and he did.

Tiger’s father had the mentality of a Black man who knew firsthand the pain of Jim Crow and a segregated America. Tiger’s mother, who came to the United States from Thailand, had an immigrant’s bring-home-straight-As mentality. Over the past 25 years or so, as Tiger’s outsized success has become a simple fact of sporting life, that part of the equation has been forgotten. But the blending of cultures is Tiger’s true origin story.

Earl and Tida never divorced but they led separate lives for years. If there was any one thing that kept them together it was Tiger’s golf skill and his promise. In word and deed, his devotion to both of them is obvious. It was a stunning sight to see Tida in the Augusta National clubhouse on Masters Sunday in 2019 as her son played the back nine, trying to win his fifth green coat. She sat with friends and her grandchildren and stared at an elevated TV. As the room murmured and cheered various shots, she was a study in impassivity.

With the outcome semi-clear she walked from the clubhouse, got her five-foot self over a security chain without assistance and stood on a hillock beside the 18th green. In Butler Cabin, in an interview with Jim Nantz, Tiger remembered the trips in the Duster.

Tiger has talked in general terms about what he learned from his mother, a practicing Buddhist, but he has kept private any details of how it shaped him. Tiger has always given the appearance of being a child of the North American experience, playing Little League baseball, rooting for the Raiders, going to Vegas. Someday we may find out that his Eastern side — his Buddhist side, his Tida side — opened a window to the game’s mysteries in ways that defy post-round interviews. Be the ball times infinity.

Something has to explain winning a Masters by 12 and a U.S. Open by 15 — beyond skill. Skill alone gets you a two-shot win.

Let’s not play Kumbaya yet. When Tiger beat Davis Love in an early-career event, Tida said, “Tiger steal his heart.” At Presidents Cups and Ryder Cups, Tida didn’t pal around with Penta Love and Mary Mickelson. Her whole life seemed to be her devotion to Woods, and later to Tiger’s children.

When Helen Nicklaus died, just before the start of the 2000 PGA Championship, Nicklaus decided to play in the tournament, saying that’s what his mother would have wanted to do. For the first two rounds, he played with Woods, who went on to win that week, on Nicklaus’s course. The summer of 2000. Tiger was on fire. Now when Tiger (perhaps?) plays later this month, at the Genesis Invitational, he will again be following in Nicklaus’s footsteps, trying to play tournament golf in the face of grief.

Unlike Helen Nicklaus and almost every other golfer’s mother, Tiger’s mother was often in view of TV cameras. Not that she welcomed it. She didn’t talk to reporters very much, and when she was quoted, she wasn’t often happy about it. She did talk to a reporter after her son’s public apology, when his private life was revealed to the world and his life imploded. She saw it for what it was, an act of media spying on a person who wasn’t an elected official, wasn’t a clergyman, wasn’t a teacher. She was angry. But she also saw something much bigger going on.

“Buddhism teaches you to go deep inside your soul and look through for yourself and correct the bad thing to be a good thing,” she said. We really don’t know much about Tiger’s private life and private thoughts, but we know a lot about his public life, his golfing life. As a golfer, he was always trying to turn weaknesses into strengths, and he did it in ways few others have.

Eighty-two wins, 15 majors, membership in the World Golf Hall of Fame, winner of the Bob Jones Award. No Tida, no any of that.