Tiger Woods withdraws in second round of 2024 Genesis ...
Tiger Woods' 2024 Genesis Invitational is officially over. Woods withdrew from the second round of competition while on the seventh hole at Riviera Country Club on Friday.
Woods' early departure is due to illness, according to the PGA Tour, and not his physical state despite that the 48-year-old was dealing with back spasms down the stretch of his first round Thursday.
Tiger was also noticeably limping while walking into the clubhouse and playing his second round Friday.
"My back was spasming the last couple holes, and it was locking up," Woods said Thursday. "I came down and it didn't move and I presented hosel first and shanked it."
Woods was battling to make the cut after opening the Genesis Invitational with a 1-over 72. After starting with a birdie, the tournament host dropped shots on the par-3 4th and the par-4 5th, falling to 2 over for the tournament. He was in danger of not playing the weekend sitting outside the top 50 and more than 10 strokes behind leader Patrick Cantlay.
The Genesis Invitational was Woods' first start on the PGA Tour since the 2023 Masters where he was forced to withdraw due to an ankle injury. Woods has now withdrawn from three of his last six tournaments since the 2022 Masters and only completed 72 holes on the PGA Tour twice (including at Riviera last season).
Where Tiger goes from here is up in the air. Sounding confident this winter at the Hero World Challenge while suggesting he could play as much as one tournament per month in 2024, Woods may now be reconsidering his prior statement if this withdrawal was due to more than just an illness.
Either the Arnold Palmer Invitational or The Players Championship -- both in March -- make for a logical return tournament for Woods as he ramps up preparations for the Masters.
It is clear Woods needs more time in the arena. He flashed vintage Tiger in his latest comeback attempt but lacks the consistency to string together four rounds and keep pace with his peers. Woods' first round was emblematic of this as he carded five birdies, six bogeys and seven pars. Ultimately, his battle for consistency is not against his game but against his body, too.
Physically, Tiger is limited in terms of practice time, and of course, tournament action where sharpness -- or lack thereof -- ultimately surfaces. If he chooses to forgo competition during the Florida Swing, the 15-time major champion could arrive at Augusta National in April with little or no game reps under his belt for the third straight year.
