For his first PGA Tour appearance since the British Open last July, Tiger Woods committed Friday to participate in the Genesis Invitational at Torrey Pines in San Diego, one of his favorite locations.
For the first time since undergoing his sixth lower back surgery, a microdiscectomy in September to relieve discomfort down his legs, Woods will be playing and walking 18 holes in competition. He will participate a little more than a week after his mother, Kultida Woods, passed away on Tuesday at the age of 80.
Due to wildfires that destroyed the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles, the Genesis Invitational was rescheduled from Riviera Country Club to Woods.
He has won eight times at Torrey Pines, including the 2008 U.S. Open, but he has never triumphed at Riviera. His most recent PGA Tour top-10 result, a tie for ninth at the Farmers Insurance Open in 2020, also took place on the public course beside the Pacific Ocean.
The Genesis Invitational is a signature tournament with a restricted field and no cut. Since breaking the tournament record for successive cuts with his 24th at the Masters last year, Woods has not participated in four rounds of an event. He shot 82-77 throughout the weekend, finishing last among those who made the cut. Last year, he participated in the other three major tournaments but was not selected each time.
