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Does Tiger Woods Still Play Golf? Is He Retired?

Richard Janvrin by Richard Janvrin, January 20, 2026

Tiger Woods on a golf course wearing a white Nike golf shirt

Every day, fans around the United States bet on pro golf online and one of their favorite golfers to wager on is Tiger Woods. Over his career, he has 110 professional wins, was the No. 1 golfer in the world for 683 weeks (more than 13 years), and has won 15 major championships.

As of Dec. 30, 2025, Woods is 50 years old, prompting the question: “Does Tiger Woods still play golf?”

After all, he hasn’t competed in a PGA event since the 2024 U.S. Open in June that year.

Below, I’ll not only answer that question, but also answer another question, “Will Tiger ever play again?”, and also determine if Tiger Woods has retired.

Tiger Woods Injury and Road to Recovery

If you Googled something like “Tiger Woods still playing golf?” you’ll find that the 50-year-old is currently dealing with a couple of massive injuries.

In March 2025, Woods ruptured his left Achilles tendon while practicing. This required surgery, and he missed the 2025 season. Then, in October that same year, he underwent lumbar disc replacement surgery. This was his seventh back surgery, and he was dealing with consistent pain and mobility issues.

Also, remember that Woods was in a serious car accident in 2021, which left him with injuries to his spine and ankle.

Right now, Woods is cleared for chipping and putting. He’s also returned to the gym, doing some light strength and rotational work.

He provided a comment in December 2025 about his rehab process:

“It’s been slow,” said Woods, per Golf.com. “Not able to do much on a disc replacement to let it set. Can’t really do much. Now we got the OK to start cranking up a little bit in the gym, started strengthening and started doing a little bit more of the rotational component that I haven’t been able to do. Just letting the disc kind of set.”

He’ll miss the PNC Championship, an event he’s played alongside his son Charlie, and will also miss the first portion of the upcoming TGL season.

“Maybe play at the end of the [TGL] season here and there, but I don’t know,” he said. “I just started chipping and putting. I’ve got to hit more shots than just chip and putt in TGL. There’s a few drives I might have to hit.”

There’s currently no timetable for a return.

Will Tiger Ever Play Again?

At 50 years old and rehabbing some serious injuries, the question of “will Tiger ever play again?” is a fair one.

Right now, by all accounts, he plans to play again. Of course, his wants and what his body can manage to do are two different things.

He’s missed a lot of time.

If I had to guess, I’d say Woods will be back and will play again, but on a limited basis.

That said, only time will. So, to partly answer the question, “Does Tiger Woods still play golf?” the answer is not right now, but perhaps in the near future.

Tiger Woods 2025 Appearances

In 2025, Woods didn’t participate in a single PGA Tour event. However, he did play in the early goings of the TGL season, a simulated indoor golf league. He was part of the Jupiter Links Golf Club, along with Kevin Kisner, Tom Kim, and Max Homa. He was on their team for three of their four losses.

Tigers Wood Eligibilty and Potential Future Tours

Turning 50 in December, Woods is eligible for the PGA Tour Champions. That said, he hasn’t expressed publicly whether he’s interested in playing on that Tour or not. That said, it could be helpful for him as players can use carts, and it’s a 54-hole format as opposed to 72.

A 2026 comeback in some capacity seems possible, as he’d like to play at the tail-end of the TGL season, but that’s currently unknown.

Right now, there’s no commitment from Woods for any tournament or tour, which makes sense given his rehab process and how unclear everything is right now.

Will Woods Play in 2026?

Tiger Woods still playing golf in 2026 would be an excellent story. Right now, he would like to make it for the end of the 2026 TGL season, which runs through the end of March, but again, he needs to focus on his rehab first.

“I’d like to come back to just playing golf again,” he said. “I haven’t played golf in a long time. It’s been a tough year. I’ve had a lot of things happen on and off the golf course that’s been tough. And so my passion to just play, I haven’t done that in a long time. Just play. So I’ve had to sit on the sidelines for a number of months, and most of this year and quite frankly end of last year.”

Another option, as mentioned, is the PGA Tour Champions. He was asked about that, and had this to say:

“I’m just looking forward to, just let me get back to playing again, let me do that and then I’ll kind of figure out what the schedule is going to be,” Woods said. “I’m a ways away from that part of it and that type of decision, that type of commitment level. Unfortunately, I’ve been through this rehab process before, it’s just step by step. Once I get a feel for practicing, exploding, playing, the recovery process, then I can assess where I’m going to play and how much I’ll play.”

Right now, there’s just no way to gauge whether Woods will be back out there in 2026, leaving the question, “Does Tiger Woods still play golf?” up in the air for a bit longer.

Expert and Peer Perspectives on Woods’ Future

Despite the injuries and health struggles for several years now, his peers still speak highly of him. Remember, Woods won The Masters in 2019.

“I always ask him how his health is and how he’s doing. Hopefully, we’ll see him on the Champions Tour a few times this coming year. But if he could just get healthy, Tiger probably would have broken all of Jack’s records,” John Daly said.

Before his injuries, Bernhard Langer, a pro with two major championships under his belt, said via Sports Illustrated that even at 70% Woods would be tough to beat: “He’s got a lot more game than most of us,” said Bernhard Langer afterward. “Even when he is 70 percent, he’s still a force to be reckoned with. He was moving fairly good. I was watching his swing, and he was going after it. Just playing everything with a cut for most things, but he felt pretty comfortable out there, I thought.”

It’s clear the golf world still thinks highly of Woods.

Hopefully, 2026 will be the year that questions and narratives such as “will Tiger ever play again?” or “Is Tiger Woods retired?” or even “Does Tiger Woods still play professional golf?” receive answers.

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