Tiger Woods hasn’t played a full PGA Tour schedule in years. The last time he teed up more than ten times in a season was in 2019, the same year he shocked the world by winning the Masters. Since then, injuries and surgeries have kept him mostly on the sidelines, and after his serious car crash in 2021, his return to regular competition has felt more like a dream than a plan.
Fans keep waiting for one more full run – a final stretch where Tiger looks like Tiger again. But that hope is fading. On Barstool Sports’ Fore Play podcast, golf analysts Trent Ryan, Frankie Borrelli, and Sam Riggs Bozoian didn’t hold back. They believe Woods might never announce a real retirement – instead, just fade away quietly.
“I think we’re living in a wishy-washy Tiger Woods world,”Ryan said. “He’ll always leave the door open, saying ‘maybe I’ll play,’ until he’s 75.”
Woods turns 50 soon, and his body has taken a beating. He’s had six back surgeries, four knee operations, and most recently, a ruptured Achilles tendon that required surgery in March 2025. Even though he was spotted hitting balls at Liberty National before the Nexus Cup, it’s clear that walking 72 holes is now a real challenge.
A legend trapped between pride and pain
Frankie Borrelli didn’t mince words either. “The guy can barely walk,” he said. “It’s exhausting for everyone around him.”
That reality has shown itself more than once. At the 2024 Masters, Woods limped through the early rounds before bowing out. He also withdrew from both the 2022 PGA Championship and the 2024 Genesis Invitational, unable to finish what he started.
Even his peers have started to speak up. Colin Montgomerie told The Times it’s “past time” for Tiger to step away, noting that the spark just isn’t there anymore. And Paul McGinley of Sky Sports pointed out that Woods has had only one top-10 finish in 19 starts since his accident – a number that tells its own story.
Still, Tiger hasn’t given up. “I’ll play as long as I can play and I feel like I can still win,” he’s said before – and that defiance is what keeps fans believing. Players like Phil Mickelson, Davis Love III, and Fred Funk all won past 50, proving it’s possible.
But Woods’s name wasn’t listed in the first field announcement for the 2025 Hero World Challenge – the event he hosts. With three open spots left, there’s a small chance he’ll appear. Still, the silence surrounding his future has fans and analysts wondering if this is the beginning of the end.
And maybe that’s what hurts most. The idea that the greatest golfer of his generation might walk away without ever saying goodbye.
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