The accident that Tiger Woods suffered last Friday unfortunately showed that the man who for many is the best golfer in history has problems. Even his good friend Donald Trump, with little information about the incident at the time, said that Tiger “is going through a bad time”. Curiously, this week we saw him make a brief appearance in the indoor league (TGL) that he created together with Rory McIlroy. He looked eager and even hinted that he wanted to play in the Masters, but without confirming it. The next day it was Trump himself who said that Woods was going to be at Augusta, but would not play in the tournament.
Recent events have cast further doubt on his participation, although this seems a minor issue in view of the fact that he has been charged with three offences over the car crash he caused. According to police, he attempted to overtake a trailer at high speed and collided slightly with it, losing control of his own vehicle, which ended up overturning. Martin County police charged him with driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs. He tested negative for alcohol and refused to provide a urine sample. This has led many to question his possible Ryder Cup captaincy or his ability to serve as chairman of the committee planning the PGA Tour’s competitive future.
It is true that the 15-time major winner is still recovering from his seventh back surgery and there are concerns about how he may be dealing with the consequences of it after the bad experiences he had years ago. This is another off-field episode that marks his life and is part of a long list of difficult moments. On a personal level, perhaps his bad luck began in May 2006, when his father Earl Woods died of cancer. Alongside Earl, Tiger traveled much of the United States playing golf and their bond was very close as they always demonstrated. That affected him a lot.
SCANDALS AND HEALTH PROBLEMS THAT HAVE MARKED TIGER’S LIFE
WINS THE US OPEN WITH A FRACTURE: On June 24, 2008, he underwent reconstructive surgery on his left knee and missed the rest of the year. The surgery took place just days after his epic 19-hole playoff victory over Rocco Mediate at Torrey Pines, competing with torn knee ligaments and two stress fractures in his left leg. He was fully aware of what he was doing, but at no time did he want to let slip the chance to win his third US Open. It can be said that this is where his real physical problems began.
ACCIDENT ON NOVEMBER 27, 2009: Tiger crashed his vehicle into a tree and a fire hydrant in front of his home near Orlando. It happened the day after Thanksgiving and it was reported that his then-wife, Elin Nordegren, pulled him out of the car after breaking the glass with a golf club, although there was also a story of an argument between the two. Woods was taken to a hospital and released later that morning. No charges were filed following the accident. In the weeks that followed, his personal life was in the spotlight due to rumors of multiple infidelities. At that time he lost major sponsorship deals and spent 45 days in a clinic to treat his sex addiction. The Californian golfer had won 14 of his 15 majors by then and would not win another until 2019.
DIVORCE IN AUGUST 2010: He divorced after five years of marriage to Elin Nordegren, the mother of his two children. The Swedish model reportedly received between $100 and $110 million as part of the settlement.
BACK PROBLEMS: On March 31, 2014, Woods’ career began an unstoppable decline due to his back problems. He underwent back surgery a week before the Masters and for the first time did not play in the tournament. On September 16, 2015, he underwent a second back operation. That same year, on October 28, 2015, he went under the knife again for a third back surgery. On April 19, 2017, he underwent a fourth operation, this time to fuse his lower back. Between 2014 and 2017 he did not win a single tournament.
ARRESTED ON MAY 30, 2017: Woods was arrested and jailed in Jupiter, Florida, on suspicion of driving under the influence. Police found him asleep at the wheel of his vehicle in the early hours of the morning, with the engine running. He blamed it on a bad combination of painkillers. His mugshot went around the world. A few months later he pleaded guilty to reckless driving and agreed to enter a rehabilitation program. Prosecutors later dropped the DUI charge under the plea agreement. Once this episode was over, he gradually returned to competition and went on to win the Tour Championship in September 2018. Although he admits that his back problems kept him bedridden for a long time and he is no longer the same player he once was, he competes regularly and his results are not bad. In 2019 he made history by winning his fifth Masters and all his problems seemed forgotten. In 2019 he played fewer tournaments, but his victory at the Zozo Championship tied him with Sam Snead as the player with the most wins on the PGA Tour (82). Since then, his record has not moved.
BACK PROBLEMS RETURN: On January 19, 2021, the Californian golfer announced that he had undergone his fifth back surgery.
ACCIDENT THAT ALMOST COST HIM A LEG: On February 23, 2021, Woods had an accident with his vehicle, which ended up overturned, on the outskirts of Los Angeles after finishing the tournament he himself organized, the Genesis Invitational. Authorities reported that he was traveling at a speed of between 135 and 140 km/h on a road limited to 72 km/h. He suffered comminuted open fractures in the upper and lower part of the right leg, as well as significant trauma to the right ankle. It was necessary to insert a rod, screws and nails to stabilize the leg. Since then he has only played in 11 tournaments and has always been seen to suffer physically on the course. On April 19, 2023, Tiger underwent a subtalar fusion in his right ankle to “address post-traumatic arthritis from his previous talus fracture.”
BACK INJURY STRIKES AGAIN: Tiger manages to play five tournaments in 2024, but on September 13, 2024, he announces that he underwent surgery on his lower back, which he described as “lumbar microdecompression surgery for nerve compression in the lower back.”
ACHILLES TENDON AND SEVENTH BACK: On March 11, 2025, the golfer underwent surgery after rupturing his left Achilles tendon while increasing the intensity of his training to prepare for the Masters. As if that were not enough, on October 11, 2025, he underwent his seventh back surgeryto replace a disc in the lower back
Yesterday we learned that Woods had entered the US Senior Open as a prerequisite in case he finally opts to participate. Tiger has not yet commented on his incident last Friday, March 27. In any case, the life and career of perhaps the greatest golfer in history began to change when he won his third US Open while injured. Publicly, his image was badly damaged by the 2009 scandal.
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