Tag: Injury

Categories
PGA Tour

Tiger Woods likely to miss Masters due to injury

Tiger Woods at the 2024 Masters in Augusta. (Photo: Getty)
Tiger Woods at the 2024 Masters in Augusta. (Photo: Getty)

Tiger Woods will in all likelihood not be taking part in this year’s Masters Tournament. The reason for this is an injury that he sustained while training at home – a torn Achilles tendon.

“As I began to ramp up my own training and practice at home, I felt a sharp pain in my left Achilles, which was deemed to be ruptured,” the 49-year-old said in a message on Instagram and X.

The minimally-invasive surgery took place on Tuesday morning at the Hospital for Special Surgery in West Palm Beach, Florida. “The surgery went smoothly, and we expect a full recovery,” said the attending doctor, Dr. Charlton Stucken.

Tiger Woods: Comeback delayed by multiple setbacks

Woods is now at home and focused on recovery. Although he has not shared his plans concerning the Masters, it is considered unlikely that he will take part in the first major of the year, which begins in just over four weeks. The traditional tournament at Augusta National Golf Club will be held for the 89th time in April – Tiger Woods has won it five times, most recently in 2019.

It has been eight months since his last appearance in an official PGA Tour tournament. He played the British Open at Royal Troon in July. Since then, his tour comeback has been postponed again and again for various reasons. A return to the Masters seemed realistic, but now it has receded into the distance. With the injury to his Achilles tendon, Woods’ comeback remains uncertain.

The 15-time major champion has a long history of injuries: In April 2023, he competed in the Masters but had to withdraw during the third round. In the same month, he underwent surgery on his right ankle for post-traumatic arthritis, a result of his serious car accident in 2021. In September 2024, he had surgery on his lower back due to spasms and pain. Woods has been struggling with back problems on and off since 2014.

Categories
Ladies Tours

Bitten By a Dog: Defending Champion Nelly Korda Cancels Aramco Tournament

Nelly Korda withdraws Aramco London event because of a dog bite. (Image: Getty)
Nelly Korda withdraws Aramco London event because of a dog bite. (Image: Getty)

There is a rather old joke in editorial circles about trainee training, which is the equivalent of an apprenticeship in the trades – yes, even in journalism you should learn and master the craft from the ground up. In any case, the gag goes like this: “Dog bites man” is not newsworthy; “Man bites dog”, THAT is newsworthy. Exceptions prove the rule, of course. Which brings us to Nelly Korda (25), who has had some eventful times on and off the fairways. Cue thrombosis in her arm, six victories, but recently also three missed cuts in a row and rounds in the 80s at the US Women’s Open and the Women’s PGA Championship, the worst scores of her career to date. Now the world number one has cancelled her participation in the Aramco Team Series event on the Ladies European Tour (LET) this week at the Centurion Club in England (3 to 5 July), where the LIV League celebrated its premiere in 2022. Korda would have been the defending champion after last year’s victory over Lokamatador Charley Hull, but: “I was bitten by a dog in Seattle on Saturday.” That is indeed a news story.

Did a fan jinx the dog bite?

The circumstances of the mishap are not known, neither the location or extent of the injury nor the breed of the dog. Although one prankster has already claimed that Korda’s run of bad luck must have something to do with the puppy he adopted six weeks ago and named Nelly:

This cute little puppy is the reason for Nelly Korda’s downfall.
byu/cavemansoup ingolf

“I need time to get treatment and fully recover,” Korda wrote on Instagram. “I apologise to the LET, the sponsors and my fans for my absence. Thank you for your understanding and I look forward to returning to the course soon.” After all, the Amundi Evian Championship (11 to 14 July), the fourth major of the season, is coming up next week.