Tiger Woods hints at major career shift with unexpected appearance

Tiger Woods hinted at a possible career change on Sunday when he appeared as a guest commentator on the Golf Channel broadcast of the Hero World Challenge in the Bahamas.

The 49-year-old joined fellow golfing star Kevin Kisner as they commentated on the final round of the tournament, which Tiger hosts each year. The duo shared hilarious banter as they reminisced about a particularly memorable bunker shot that Kevin hit during a match earlier in the year, which saw him hit a flagpole.

“So, since you’ve been practising your chipping and putting, are you ready for me to come down there and whack you for the TGL season coming up?” Kevin joked.

“Hey, I’ve seen you chip. I know you can putt. I think we can work on the bunker game a little bit,” Tiger responded.

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Tiger’s fans couldn’t get enough of his commentary, sharing online that he was “pure comedy gold”, while another added: “Tiger would make an awesome broadcaster in the future!”

The father of two has been plagued by injuries in recent years, and recently updated the press on how he was faring after undergoing surgery on his back just weeks prior.

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“I just got cleared last week to chip and putt, so that’s good,’ he said at a press conference ahead of the Hero World Challenge. “It’s been six weeks. It’s been slow, and you can’t really do anything on a disc replacement. You’ve got to let it set.”

“Now we’ve got the okay to start cranking up a little bit in the gym, start strengthening and doing more of the rotational component that I haven’t been able to do.” He announced the major surgery in October, taking to X to reassure fans of his speedy recovery.

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“After experiencing pain and lack of mobility in my back, I consulted with doctors and surgeons to have tests taken,” he wrote. “The scans determined that I had a collapsed disc in L4/5, disc fragments and a compromised spinal canal.”

“I have opted to have my disc replaced yesterday, and I already know I made a good decision for my health and my back,” he continued. Tiger’s first back surgery was a microdiscectomy in 2014 to address a pinched nerve, which he followed with three more procedures in the ensuing years.

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He then underwent a microdecompression surgery in September 2024 to fix a nerve impingement.

“The surgery went smoothly, and I’m hopeful this will help alleviate the back spasms and pain I was experiencing throughout most of the 2024 season,” he shared with fans.  

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“I look forward to tackling this rehab and preparing myself to get back to normal life activities, including golf.” 

Tiger’s health battle worsened after he was involved in a major car crash in February 2021, which saw his vehicle roll several times on a road in Southern California. His right leg was severely damaged, and he had a rod inserted in it with pins and screws to hold it in place.