Tiger Woods practiced at Southern Hills on Sunday ahead of this week’s PGA Championship which starts on Thursday. Photo: EPA/ERIK S. LESSER
Woods describes facing fear of leg amputation – WATCH
In his first in-depth interview since his February car accident, Tiger Woods has described nearly losing his leg and his subsequent recovery.
Tiger Woods practiced at Southern Hills on Sunday ahead of this week’s PGA Championship which starts on Thursday. Photo: EPA/ERIK S. LESSER
In a 30-minute interview with Golf Digest, Tiger Woods opens up about a painful year, a possible return to golf, and how challenging his recovery has been after his frightening car accident in February.
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Woods suffered comminuted open fractures to both the tibia and the fibula in his right leg after his car crash in Los Angeles on February 23. He was rushed to hospital, where he spent three weeks and faced the possibility of amputation.
“There was a point in time when, I wouldn’t say it was 50/50, but it was damn near there if I was going to walk out of that hospital with one leg. Once I [kept it], I wanted to test and see if I still had my hands. So even in the hospital, I would have [girlfriend] Erica [Herman] and [friend] Rob [McNamara] throw me something. Throw me anything.”
The full video can be watched below:
Woods hopes to pick and choose certain events to play in
The 15-time major winner also told Golf Digest that although he is confident of eventually making a return to the sport, he expected he would only play select tournaments from now on.
The 45-year-old former world number one suffered compound fractures in his right leg after a car he was driving in a Los Angeles suburb in February veered off the road and flipped several times.
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Before the accident, Woods was already playing a reduced schedule following multiple surgeries on his back and knee over the years.
He told Golf Digest on Monday that his days as a full-time member of the PGA Tour were now effectively over, saying he now expected to “pick and choose” events in future.
“I think something that is realistic is playing the Tour one day – never full time, ever again – but pick and choose,” Tiger Woods said.
“Pick and choose a few events a year and you play around that.
“I think that’s how I’m going to have to play it from now on. It’s an unfortunate reality, but it’s my reality. And I understand it, and I accept it.”
Additional reporting by AFP
