Tiger Woods To Have Knee Surgery, Will Miss Rest Of The Year
Tiger Woods, who went 91 holes on a wounded knee to win the U.S. Open on Monday, will have reconstructive surgery on the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee and will miss the rest of the 2008 PGA TOUR season.
No date has been set for the surgery.
Suddenly a season that had dawned with Woods saying the Grand Slam was “easily within reason” became clouded with doubt and uncertainty as he prepares for a second surgery on his left knee within 10 weeks.
By missing the rest of this season, Woods will not play in either of the last two majors, the British Open next month and the PGA Championship in August. It will be the first time he will have missed a major championship since turning pro.
Woods will also not play for the U.S. team in the Ryder Cup in September and will not participate in the FedExCup Playoffs this fall. Woods won the inaugural FedExCup last year.
“While I am obviously disappointed to have to miss the remainder of the season, I have to do the right thing for my long-term health and look forward to returning to competitive golf when my doctors agree that my knee is sufficiently healthy,” Woods said in a statement released by his management company, IMG.
“My doctors assure me with the proper rehabilitation and training, the knee will be strong and there will be no long-term effects.”
PGA TOUR Commissioner Tim Finchem said Woods’s presence will be missed during the second half of the season.
“For an athlete as talented and competitive as Tiger Woods, taking the rest of the season off must have been an incredibly difficult, yet necessary decision, one that we understand and support completely,” Finchem said. “The fact that he needs additional surgery only makes his performance and victory at last week’s U.S. Open all the more impressive.
“First and foremost, our concern — as it would be for any of our players facing surgery or illness — is for Tiger’s health and overall well-being, both on and off the golf course. We wish him the best toward a speedy recovery.”
The first operation, an arthroscopic procedure to clean out cartilage, was performed two days after he finished second in the Masters. While Woods practiced and prepared for his return at Torrey Pines, he did not walk 18 holes until the first round of the U.S. Open.
The game’s No. 1 player was clearly in pain during the tournament, frequently doubling over after hitting shots and occasionally using a club to lean on as he walked off tees. The pain resulted from double stress fracture to his left tibia that was discovered prior to the Memorial Tournament.
The stress fractures were attributed to Woods’ intense preparation to return to the PGA TOUR. Doctors have assured him those will heal with time.
Still, Woods ended 72 holes in a tie with Rocco Mediate, came back for the 18-hole playoff on Monday and won with a par on the first hole of sudden death. The victory was Woods’ 14th in a major championship, bringing him with four of Jack Nicklaus’ all-time record.
“I know much was made of my knee throughout the last week, and it was important to me that I disclose my condition publicly at an appropriate time,” Woods said. “I wanted to be very respectful of the USGA and their incredibly hard work, and make sure the focus was on the U.S. Open.
“Now, it is clear that the right thing to do is to listen to my doctors, follow through with this surgery, and focus my attention on rehabilitating my knee.”
After hoisting the U.S. Open trophy for the third time in his career, Woods said he planned to “shut it down” for a while. While most expected appearances at next week’s Buick Open and AT&T National the following week were in jeopardy, few expected Wednesday’s news.
Woods originally ruptured the ACL following the British Open Championship last year while he was running at home in Orlando. He decided not to have surgery at that point and went on to win five of his next six events — including the PGA Championship and the final two events in the PGA TOUR Playoffs for the FedExCup.
Woods played sparingly during the offseason and returned to the TOUR in 2008 at the Buick Invitational. He won his first three starts of the season but was still experiencing pain so he decided to have the arthroscopic surgery to fix the damaged cartilage that developed due to the ACL injury.
“My rehabilitation schedule after the arthroscopic surgery was designed with the goal of returning to play at the Memorial, but the stress fractures that were discovered just prior to the tournament unfortunately prevented me from participating and had a huge impact on the timing for my return,” Woods said.
“I was determined though, to do everything and anything in my power to play in the U.S. Open at Torrey Pines, which is a course that is close to where I grew up and holds many special memories for me. Although I will miss the rest of the 2008 season, I’m thrilled with the fact that last week was such a special tournament.”
The upcoming surgery will be the fourth on Woods’ left knee. The first operation was in 1994 to remove a benign tumor while the second was an arthroscopic procedure in December 2002. Woods returned to the TOUR in February 2003 — at the Buick Invitational at Torrey Pines — and won three of his next four starts.
- PGA Tour.com
