Tiger Woods is arguably the greatest golfer of all time, however, the 82-time PGA Tour winner finds himself a long way away from his former self in the world rankings
Tiger Woods has fallen to a career low(Image: Tony Ding/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Tiger Woods has dropped to his lowest-ever position in the Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR), as the 15-time major champion’s lengthy absence away from the course continues.
Woods has spent longer at the top of the world rankings than any other player, having dominated the sport during the late 1990s and through into the 2000s. More recently, though, things have been much tougher for the 49-year-old, who has battled a whole host of issues.
The latest being a problem with his Achilles sustained in training, which ensured Woods missed out on competing at the opening major championship of the year at the Masters earlier this month.
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Having missed the trip to Augusta National, where Rory McIlroy completed the Grand Slam, Woods has not played competitively on the PGA Tour since missing the cut at The Open Championship last July in brutal conditions on the Scottish coast at Royal Troon.
Following the update to the OWGR list on Monday, Woods has dropped to his lowest position, currently sitting 1,341st. Having sustained his latest injury last month, it is expected that Woods will miss the remainder of the 2025 season amid the severity of the injury.
Announcing the injury on social media, Woods wrote: “As I began to ramp up my own training and practice at home, I felt a sharp pain in my left Achilles, which was deemed to be ruptured. This morning, Dr. Charlton Stucken of Hospital for Special Surgery in West Palm Beach, Florida, performed a minimally-invasive Achilles tendon repair for a ruptured tendon.
Tiger Woods is struggling with injury(Image: 2024 TGL)
“‘The surgery went smoothly, and we expect a full recovery,’ added Dr. Stucken. I am back home now and plan to focus on my recovery and rehab, thank you for all the support.” Another lengthy recovery process is on the table for Woods, who has suffered a whole host of recent issues over the past four years.
Providing an insight into what Woods will face in the coming months, golf physiotherapy specialist James Ashcroft told Mirror U.S. Sports in March: “For a right-handed golfer a left Achilles injury is moderately serious in that it is a fair amount of time away and can take up to a full year to get strength back throughout that leg compared to pre-injury.
“‘However most healthy players should be able to get back to swinging and practicing more fully in the 4-6 month range… Usual recovery for this type of injury would be five to eight months for a golfer and 8-12 months for a contact sport athlete.”
If Woods’ return is to come as expected in 2026, he will be able to begin a career on the PGA Tour Champions with the 15-time major winner turning 50 in December. It appears to be a plausible option for golfing great, with the senior circuit hosting 54-hole events, with the use of a golf cart available.
