The ongoing story of a Tiger Woods' return to competitive action was ramped up on Saturday when, according to TWLegion and Sports Illustrated, the 15-time Major winner "is expected to arrive at Augusta National tomorrow (Sunday) afternoon, potentially unannounced."
In a tweet by TWLegion, which stated that Sports Illustrated were reporting the potential arrival, it was said that Tiger will be making an appearance at Augusta National, potentially unannounced, with news of his return still being kept behind closed doors as the Masters gets underway on Thursday 7th April.
🚨#BREAKING: Tiger Woods is expected to arrive at Augusta National tomorrow afternoon, potentially unannounced, Sports Illustrated is reporting.April 2, 2022
At the time of writing, Tiger has made no announcement about his return. However, there is no official deadline for when he must inform tournament officials. This is because entry to the Masters is by invitation only. Therefore, Woods is deemed to be playing until he informs Augusta National representatives otherwise, which explains why he is still listed as 'in the field' on the official website. The 46-year old could go right up to the eve or even the day of the tournament, should he wish.
Now, with the reported arrival tomorrow, there are a number of theories that could be made but, importantly, Tiger did play a practice round at Augusta National on Tuesday with his son, Charlie, and close friend, Justin Thomas, with one source on the ground at Augusta giving a positive account to ESPN, stating: "He played every one of them (18 holes). He looked good to me."
After Tiger flew back home to Florida on Wednesday, the question remains though on whether he can survive the walk around the undulating layout of Augusta National. At the PNC Championship back in December, we saw some classy shots from the 15-time Major winner, but all lies with the right leg that he injured in the crash back in February 2021.
Woods' last appearance came at the 2020 Masters where he finished T38
Along with sources and individuals giving their thoughts and views, Tiger has become the most bet on golfer to win the 2022 Masters, with US bookie, PointsBet, claiming that punters have rushed to put money on Tiger to win a sixth Green Jacket.
One thing that is for certain though is that Tiger will be attending the Champions Dinner, which is traditionally held on the Tuesday of Masters week. He has also not ruled out the possibility of playing the Par-3 Contest on Wednesday, but as the days have gone by, it now looks a possibility that he will actually feature in the tournament.
