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Tiger Woods returns to competition for the first time since his car crash

Tiger Woods smiles and gestures as he prepares to tee off during the first round of the PNC Championship golf tournament Friday in Orlando, Fla. Woods is back playing after getting injured in a car accident. He is paired with his son Charlie during the tournament.
Scott Audette
/
AP
Tiger Woods smiles and gestures as he prepares to tee off during the first round of the PNC Championship golf tournament Friday in Orlando, Fla. Woods is back playing after getting injured in a car accident. He is paired with his son Charlie during the tournament.

Tiger Woods fans, rejoice.

The golf legend has returned to competition, playing in the PNC Championship with his 12-year-old son Charlie this weekend. It's Woods' first time competing since his car accidentin February, which resulted in extensive leg surgery.

"Although it's been a long and challenging year, I am very excited to close it out by competing in the @PNCchampionship with my son Charlie. I'm playing as a Dad and couldn't be more excited and proud," Woods tweeted on Dec. 8.

Woods' recovery from the accident is still ongoing. Last month, he tweeted a video of himself practicing his swing, posting that he was "making progress."

Woods spoke to Golf Digest in May about his injuries. "This has been an entirely different animal," he said. "I understand more of the rehab processes because of my past injuries, but this was more painful than anything I have ever experienced."

The athlete had to have a rod inserted into his tibia and had to get pins and screws inserted into his foot and ankle.

But with his return to competition this weekend, questions have lingered as to whether Woods will imminently come back to the game full time. But he shut down those questions speaking to reporters Friday from Orlando.

"I just don't have the endurance," Woods said. "I'm a long way away from playing tournament golf."

Golf Digest reporter Dan Rapaport tweeted his assessment of Woods' game so far this weekend: "He's upright. His short-irons/wedges look great. The longer stuff is a struggle. He's just not there yet. So let's just enjoy and not look too deep into anything."

Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

Deepa Shivaram
Deepa Shivaram is a multi-platform political reporter on NPR's Washington Desk.