Woods Talks About Return from Back Surgery


During a Monday press conference for his own tournament, the Quicken Loans National, Tiger Woods discussed the recovery process for his back surgery on March 31.

Despite being away from competition for almost two months, Woods maintained his No. 1 spot in the World Golf Rankings through Monday, when Adam Scott moved past him into the top position, dropping Woods to second.

Woods' microdiscectomy procedure eased the pain from a pinched back nerve but the rehab is a long, delicate process. Only recently has Woods been able to chip and putt. There's no timetable for when he can start making full swings.

Woods said he feared that he might not be able to play again before the surgery, but noted the procedure provided "immediate relief."

The 14-time major winner added that once he feel's "explosive" again with his full swing - "sometime this summer" - it shouldn't take long for him to be tournament-ready.

Here's what else Woods had to say to reporters during the press conference for the Quicken Loans National. The $6.5 million event will take place June 26-29 at Congressional Country Club in Bethesda, Md. Bill Haas is the defending champion.

Q. Having had major surgery myself two weeks ago, I do not even remotely feel quite myself yet. Can you talk a little bit about your spirit the last two months or so and the process that you've been going through?

TIGER WOODS: Yeah, it's a great question because it's certainly debilitating initially, sore, pain. Those are all things that do go away over time. This has been a different procedure than I've had in the past. Certainly a lot more tedious, I think, with the workouts and the little things you have to do, little minutia things you have to do on a daily basis. That's been certainly a lot different than in the past with my other surgeries. This has been certainly eye opening in that respect, but I've had some great support. I think probably the hardest thing over this period, it's been seven weeks I think almost to the day, has been trying to not do too much with my kids, Sam and Charlie. They saw me when I first got back, and I'm pretty sore and everything, but then again, they soon forget that and want to go out and play soccer and hit some balls or do something like that. That part has been hard. Just to feel their love each and every time, it's pretty cool.

Q. Is there any way timetable wise to say whether Pinehurst is in the picture, and what about here?

TIGER WOODS: There really is no timetable. I think that's been kind of the realization to all of this is that there's no date. It's just take it on a daily basis. It's not going to be up to me whether I play or not, it's going to be up to my docs. I have to - obviously I want to play now. It would be nice to be able to go out there today and play with you guys, even though I really don't like to play with you guys (laughter), but it would be fun. I miss playing. I miss being out there on the golf course and doing that. I miss getting out there and hitting balls like that and just playing. I miss the game.

Forget about competing at the highest levels, I just miss being out there and just being around the golf course. As of right now, I can chip and putt, but that's it. We are going to just take it slowly, and I don't know how many more weeks I'm going to be at this pace, but at least I have something, so I'm able to actually get out there and chip and putt. But as far as full swings and that timetable about playing, I don't know.

Q. I think one thing that a lot of people admire about you is your unyielding resolve. You set a goal out, you want to accomplish it. This being a different sort of setback, has this tested your - have maybe doubts crept in like they haven't before, and how do you deal with that?

TIGER WOODS: You know, I think the only doubts that I had was prior to the surgery. I couldn't function anymore. I've had knee surgeries in the past, but yeah, I was hurting going into it, but I was functioning. I could do things. The time right before the surgery, I really couldn't do much. Getting out of bed was a task, and forget about playing golf at the highest level. I couldn't get out of bed. So yeah, I was certainly doubtful at that point.

What was I going to feel like? Am I going to be pain free? Am I actually going to be able to do this again where I can get out of bed and go out there and play with my kids and play golf? All those things are up in the air. But after I had the procedure, it was immediate relief, and it's just a matter of getting through that pain part. It wasn't the shocking pain or debilitating pain, it was just pain from the surgery, from the incision, but it wasn't like it was right before. That was no bueno.

Q. You talk about right after the surgery the pain went away. Jason Bohn had the exact same procedure and he said the hardest thing was right out of surgery that pain was gone, and you have to fight the urge to go out there and maybe overdo it. Is that one of the things you're fighting right now, to make sure you listen to your doctors and do everything right?

TIGER WOODS: Absolutely. That is certainly one of the hardest parts of it is that initial pain and that discomfort that I was feeling prior to the surgery is - that type of pain was gone. This was a new pain with the surgery and the incision. But I knew that would go away. Once that went away, as Jason, I don't know if he's told you, but you can't bend over, you can't twist. You take that for granted sometimes. The hardest thing, as I've said, is not to do too much with my kids. That's been probably the most difficult and challenging part because they're very active and like playing sports and so do I. That competitive part of me wants to get out there and wants to be out there with them. I've had to sit down and play catch with Charlie sometimes just sitting on the couch and get a little mitt and play catch that way. I'd like to get out there and throw with him, but I just can't do it yet.

Q. With your time not being able to play with the kids, not being able to work out, not being able to hit golf balls, how have you been passing the time and how difficult has it been?

TIGER WOODS: I'll tell you what, I am damned good at video games. Yeah, that part has been hard at times. One of my good friends Romo went through the same procedure that I had, and he said you become an expert in all different types of video games, and he's right. You pass the time for hours doing that, and I certainly have done that.

Q. Aside from video games, of course like any competitor, which you are such a competitor, how do you reconcile that instinct in watching your peers like Adam Scott go up in the rankings and such just in that time period of waiting and harboring that back?

TIGER WOODS: Well, the thing is I've been here before. I've been in this position where I've come out of a surgery and I basically have directed - because of my experiences in the past, I've been able to focus on just rehabbing and focus on the little things like that. I know that once I get to a point where I can start playing and start ramping things up is generally when I start getting antsy about getting out here and competing, but post surgery I'm really not because I know I just can't do it. But as I said, once I start ramping it up and just getting out there where I can start playing holes and start playing 36 holes a day, those type of things is when I get very antsy and want to get out there and compete. But until then, until I get to that point, I really don't feel that bad watching golf because I just know I can't do it at that level.

Q. When the doctor finally does clear you to do everything, and assuming no setbacks, how long will it take do you think? How much time do you need once you can do everything to be able to tee it up competitively?

TIGER WOODS: That's a great question. I don't know when I come back and start ramping it up how far am I away from being explosive. Do I still have that capability of hitting the ball like that? But once I start feeling like that, I don't think it would take more than a couple weeks to where I can get out there and feel like I can compete. Now, how rusty am I going to be? The more time you give me, I think the better I'll be. But as far as - the great thing about what I've done so far and all my other previous surgeries is that I worked on my short game. Once I start expanding from there and start competing and playing, if I start spraying it all over the lot and not hitting it that great, at least my short game is solid. That's one of the positives to it.

Q. Do you anticipate playing in the Quicken Loans National? And Steve, whether Tiger plays or not, what does it mean to have his name associated with this tournament?

TIGER WOODS: Well, first of all, I'd love to play. But I just don't know. And as I said, that's one of the more frustrating things. There's no date, there's no timetable, just taking it day by day and just focusing on trying to get stronger and come back. As I said, I want to play today, but that's just not going to happen. So just taking it step by step.

Q. Tiger, another pivotal point in your career you've made a swing change. A back surgery is not small. Do we anticipate another swing change?

TIGER WOODS: Well, I think there will be some adjustments made, but I don't know what they're going to be. A lot of that is going to depend on how I feel. I know going in my swing was pretty solid, but eventually I got to a point where I just couldn't do it much playing wise. But as far as making any adjustments, we're always making adjustments, always tinkering. That's what we do as golfers. But as far as any major adjustments or major changes, no, we're not going to do that. But I would like to - obviously when I get back and get my feel for things, I'll see where I am and how things are.

Q. Tiger, Arnold Palmer told me not too long ago he really doesn't like to play much anymore because he can't do what he used to do. Do you worry you won't be able to do what you used to do and dominate, and if you can't, is that something that weighs on you?

TIGER WOODS: So him that playing not much, so what, only 10 times a week (laughter)?

Q. He said he didn't enjoy it.

TIGER WOODS: There's nobody that plays more golf than that dude. That's awesome. No, I would love to be out there and competing and playing. One of the things is I would like to, as all athletes, go out on my own terms. That's what ultimately I want to continue playing at the elite level for as long as I deem I want to do it. For some guys that's in their 60s and 70s, other guys it's in their 40s and 50s. But prior to the surgery, I didn't think I would have much of a playing career if I felt like this because as I said, I couldn't get out of bed.

But now that I've had the procedure, I'm excited about what the prospects hold, that I'm able to feel this way, and if that's the case, then I'm excited about my career. I'm able to do what I want to do for as long as I want to. As I said, right before the surgery, that wasn't the case.

Q. Tiger, the last two answers you gave included the words "changes" and "athlete." You have in mind what it is to be a golf athlete. Have you or your training team or doctors thought about long term how working out might be affected?

TIGER WOODS: Yeah, we're going to make some changes with that. I've made adaptations over the years. When I first came out on Tour I was running 30 miles a week, and I was doing it for years, and even during tournament weeks I would still run five, six miles a day. But I can't do that anymore. I can't log those miles in, and we've had to make adjustments. I see the same thing here, that we're obviously going to make some adjustments going forward. But I still want to feel explosive, I still want to feel strong and mobile, and I think with the team that I have around me, they're fantastic. We're certainly headed in that direction right now.

Q. In regards to your foundation and scholarship, when you look at guys like James Green, the other scholars, what makes you most proud?

TIGER WOODS: Listening to them feel that confident in themselves and to see that that has come out in them when it's been beaten down or it's been in hibernation. Not everyone has the opportunity in life, and to see some of these kids who have gone through our program, to see the light go off like that has been - it makes it all worth it. People like James, they're just special. Just got to give them a chance.

Q. In the off season you sort of intimated that you were trying to manage your health for the long haul this year, and obviously it hasn't worked out. Were you told that there was one thing that led to this, one thing you did, or was surgery even a possibility going into the year -

TIGER WOODS: No, surgery was not a possibility. With strength and strengthening and time off and anti inflams we felt that we could manage it and I could still play at an elite level. Whether I played three, four, five weeks in a row, things of that nature, would have to be altered. But I think with a limited playing schedule I could certainly do that. Well, almost like Stricks, maybe a few more tournaments than Stricks, but something to that accord. But unfortunately that just didn't pan out.

Q. One of the players in your tournament, a marquee player Jordan Spieth, you've had a chance to watch him a lot the last few weeks. What do you see in him, and how good do you think he can be?

TIGER WOODS: I think he can be great. He's got plenty of power and confidence, and you can see how well he's been playing. The only thing that was a little bit shocking is at Augusta - I think Augusta or the Players, I don't know which one it was, but he looked at the hole, one of those short putts, and I hadn't seen that since I played with him last year. We played, I think, in a Presidents Cup practice round one of the days, and I was and still am a big believer in what he can do in the game. He's got all the tools, and it's just a matter of gaining experience. He's only, what, 20, so just give him time.

The transcript for the above interview is courtesy of ASAP Sports.