Tiger Woods Will Not Play in His Hero World Challenge

Woods had back surgery in September after playing just five tournaments in 2024.

Tiger Woods, pictured at this year's British Open, will not play in his Hero World Challenge in December. / Jack Gruber-Imagn Images

Tiger Woods will not participate in next week’s Hero World Challenge, the annual charity event in the Bahamas that benefits his foundation.

Woods announced the final three players in the field on Monday via social media and also offered his regrets about not competing, without details.

I am disappointed that I will not be able to compete this year at the Hero World Challenge, but always look forward to being tournament host and spending the week with @HeroMotoCorp. Excited to welcome our exemptions @JustinThomas34, @JDayGolf and @NickDunlap62 into the field.

— Tiger Woods (@TigerWoods) November 25, 2024

But the news should not come as a surprise. In September, Woods had another procedure called a micro decompression surgery of the lumbar spine. It was done for nerve impingement of the lower back and similar to four previous procedures he’s had over the past decade.

Woods, who turns 49 at the end of next month, played just five times worldwide in 2024, missing the cut at the last three major championships. Back problems were clearly at the root of his third-round 82 at the Masters, where he made the cut for the 24th straight time. His last appearance came in July at the British Open. He announced the latest procedure on Sept. 13, less than three months ago.

“I am disappointed that I will not be able to compete this year at the Hero World Challenge, but always look forward to being tournament host,” he said via social media.

Woods has endured at least six back procedures dating to a microdiscectomy on March 31, 2014. That caused him to miss the Masters for the first time in his career that spring. He also missed the U.S. Open in June, returned a few weeks later, but struggled the rest of the year.

He had the procedure two more times, in September and October of 2015, thus missing nearly all of the 2016 and 2017 golf seasons (he played in three events), leading to the April 2017 spinal fusion surgery. Woods came back from that to win three times, including the 2019 Masters.

But in late 2020, Woods had another back procedure, which was largely forgotten in the aftermath of his serious car crash in February 2021, which led to extensive right leg, ankle and foot injuries.

Woods, a 15-time major champion, has played just 11 worldwide events since returning from the crash.

Starting in 2020, he has played the PNC Championship with his son, Charlie, a 36-hole exhibition, each December. It remains unclear if he will participate in the event next month, Dec. 21-22.

Woods announced that Justin Thomas, Jason Day and Nick Dunlap would be filling out the 20-player field at Albany outside of Nassau, Bahamas. Scottie Scheffler is the defending champion.