Tiger Woods heading to Players Championship, but will he play?
Well, Tiger Woods is apparently going to be at The Players Championship in Ponte Vedra, Florida. Whether he’ll play or not is another matter.
The PGA Tour on Sunday noted that Woods, who withdrew from this week’s Arnold Palmer Invitational with neck pain, would be holding a media conference on Tuesday. While Woods’ conferences are generally light on actual news, they almost always accompany an actual playing position in the tournament itself.
Woods withdrew from the Arnold Palmer Invitational early last week, noting on Twitter that a recurring neck problem hadn’t improved enough yet to allow him to play:
1) Unfortunately due to a neck strain that I’ve had for a few weeks, I'm forced to withdraw from the API. I’ve been receiving treatment, but it hasn't improved enough to play. My lower back is fine, and I have no long-term concerns, and I hope to be ready for The Players.
— Tiger Woods (@TigerWoods) March 4, 2019
While he technically can wait until his Thursday tee time to withdraw from the tournament, Woods will likely make a go-no go decision much earlier than that. ESPN’s Michael Collins reports that Woods will hold his customary Tuesday media conference after playing a nine-hole practice round at TPC Sawgrass.
Woods didn’t make any public comments following his withdrawal from the API, but Rory McIlroy had noted earlier this week that he’d seen Woods receiving treatment during the WGC-Mexico event in February. Woods has also sported KT Tape, a therapeutic measure, at many of his recent tournaments.
So far this year, Woods has a T20 in the Farmers Insurance Open, a T15 at the Genesis Open and a T10 at the WGC-Mexico. That trend line bodes well for the Players, where Woods has two wins, in 2001 and 2013.
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Jay Busbee is a writer for Yahoo Sports. Contact him at jay.busbee@yahoo.com or find him on Twitter or on Facebook.
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