Just One Month On From Back Surgery, Tiger Woods Makes First Public Appearance

Tiger Woods has been spotted in public, just a month after he underwent the seventh back surgery in his career.

Per content creators St Andre Golf and reported on X by TWLegion, the 15-time Major winner was photographed at a Bridgestone Golf content shoot on Tuesday in Florida.

In the images, Woods appears relaxed, while in one of them, he appears to be standing naturally and without discomfort.

That will offer encouragement to fans, particularly as October's surgery, to have a disc replaced in his back, was his third time under the knife in just 13 months.

In September 2023, he underwent microdecompression surgery of the lumbar spine for nerve impingement in the lower back.

The first warning signs of an issue had come that February at the Genesis Invitational, when back spasms led to a cold shank on the closing hole on his third round.

Following the surgery, Woods returned to action at last December’s PNC Championship before competing for Jupiter Links GC in the inaugural season of TGL, which ran between January and March.

However, just a week after the end of the TGL season, he announced he had undergone surgery on his left achilles to treat “a minimally-invasive achilles tendon repair for a ruptured tendon” after feeling a sharp pain while he was at home preparing for his return to pro golf.

That left him sidelined throughout the season, and, following his most recent back surgery, there was no sign of his name in the field for the Hero World Challenge, which Woods hosts and which takes place at Albany in the Bahamas between December 4^th and 7^th.

That leaves just one more potential comeback event for Woods this year, the PNC Championship, which Woods regularly plays with his son Charlie and will be held the week before Christmas.

Currently, 12 of the 20 two-player teams have been confirmed for the tournament. However, as yet, the father-son duo, who would be able to use a cart at the event, are not among them.

Whether Woods plays in that event or not, the images at the Bridgestone Golf shoot will offer encouragement that he could make his comeback to competitive golf sooner rather than later.

Woods has a long-standing relationship with Bridgestone Golf. In January, he extended his ball sponsorship with the company.

In a press release, he said: “I have played a ball manufactured by Bridgestone since my memorable 2000 season.

“Since the beginning, Bridgestone has continued to innovate and lead the golf ball category in terms of technology, performance, and consistency.”

“They are great at what they do, and I look forward to continuing to work with their R&D team to design industry leading golf balls."