Earlier this month Tiger Woods admitted he’s only touched a golf club three times since the sudden passing of his mother, Kultida, who died on Feb. 4 at the age of 78.
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“This is the third time I’ve touched a club since my mom passed, so I haven’t really gotten into it,” Woods said last week at a TGL match. “My heart is not into practicing right now. I have so many other things to do with the tour. Once I start probably feeling a little bit better and start getting into it, I’ll start looking at the schedule.”
Woods is not in the field for The Players Championship set to tee off on Thursday morning, which sparked speculation about his fitness for the year’s first major tournament. The Masters tees off one month from today – March 10 – leaving fans wondering if he’ll play.
Even if he does tee it up at Augusta National, though, legendary golfer Gary Player isn’t convinced he’ll be able to perform well. Player raved about what Woods did for the game of golf, but believes his leg injuries from a terrible car accident won’t allow him to contend.
“I’m such an admirer of Tiger Woods,” he told SportsBoom.com. “You know, he did what he did for golf around the world is remarkable. The same as Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus and a host of players.”
“But you know, Tiger Woods’ legs, your legs are what carry you around. Your legs are what hit the ball, not your hands,” he added. “And his legs are not in good shape. And The Masters, what people don’t understand, look at that tournament. It’s uphill and it’s downhill and it’s sidehill. And that is tough, tough on the legs.
“I don’t know if he can walk around there. We hope he’ll play. Everybody wants to see him play.”
The Masters tees off on April 10.