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ST. LOUIS, Missouri: World’s number one Tiger Woods said on Monday
that his recovery from left knee surgery is going well and that he
hopes to play in the Memorial tournament in two weeks as well as the
US Open.
Speaking from his Florida home to reporters
gathered here at the site of a US PGA Tour playoff event in
September, Woods said he has not progressed beyond chipping and
putting but plans to do so soon.
“The rehab is going well. I’ve been training
hard,” Woods said. “I’m getting sick and tired of riding the
bike, though. That gets old fast.
“I’m chipping and putting. I’m not doing
anything beyond that. Hopefully I’ll start hitting balls, start
progressing soon and work my way up the bag.”
Woods’ target is due to return to the tour by
May 29, the opening round of the Memorial event hosted by Jack
Nicklaus at Dublin, Ohio, and be ready for the second major
tournament of the year, the US Open on June 12 to 15 at Torrey
Pines.
“Everything in my life is doing great,”
Woods said. “I’m just trying to get the leg organized enough to
where I can play and hopefully I can play before. If not, if I
can’t play before, then hopefully at the Open.”
Woods has won 13 major titles, five shy of
matching boyhood idol Nicklaus for the all-time career record. He
has won six times as a pro at Torrey Pines, including an
eight-stroke triumph in his 2008 debut this campaign to start a run
of four victories in a row to begin the season.
Woods, who has undergone three operations on the
knee, has made swing shifts over the years to try and ease stress
upon his legs.
“That’s one of the reasons why I’ve made
changes in my swing over the years, to alleviate the stress I put on
my legs,” Woods said. “It has gotten better and hopefully it
will continue to get better.”
After Spain’s Sergio Garcia won the Players
Championship on Sunday, he joked that he was glad Woods did not
play. “I think he was just poking fun,” Woods said.
Woods expects a more difficult layout than PGA
events at Torrey Pines when he sees the San Diego course next month.
“I’m sure [the fairways] are probably
narrower. The rough will certainly be deeper and the greens will be
dried out and baked out that time of year,” Woods said.
-- AFP
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