Tiger Woods has not ruled himself out of the Masters: "I want to play; I'm still trying"

Tiger Woods does not rule out playing in the next edition of the Masters, which will be held from April 9 to 12, as he announced in the press conference after the final of the virtual TGL league in Florida. His presence in this simulator tournament marked his return to competition after almost two years of inactivity. Woods is continuing his recovery process following the back surgery he underwent on October 11. "I feel good physically. What I found interesting were the shots, because normally you have more rhythm when you play a normal round of golf, when you are hitting the ball. Here, it's a different rhythm. It's like when you play the Ryder Cup or the Presidents Cup in pairs matches. In some matches you don't hole a putt for 10 or 11 holes and suddenly you have to hole a one-meter putt. That's what it feels like here," Woods said.

Woods did not shy away from the question of whether he would be seen at Augusta: "I want to play. I love the tournament. I have loved being there since I was 19 years old. It has meant a lot to me and my family over the years. This body does not recover like when I was 24 or 25 years old. That doesn't mean I'm not trying."

The five-time Green Jacket winner warned that whether he plays or not, he will be at Augusta for the Champions Dinner, whose menu this year has been chosen by Rory McIlroy with memories of his childhood."I've had a couple of serious injuries over the last few years that I've had to deal with and it's taken me a while. But I'm still trying. I'll be practicing, playing at home this week and I'll keep trying to make progress," he said.

Tiger has been away from the course since 2024, after tearing his Achilles tendon and undergoing his seventh back surgery. His last tournament was the Open Championship that year where he missed the cut