ORLANDO — Tiger and Charlie Woods are 0-for-4 when it comes to the PNC Championship.
On Friday, the 15-time major champion was preparing for the 36-hole event as if he was determined to end that streak.
Tiger didn’t hit any shots two weeks ago in the Bahamas and said he has “a long way to go” before playing competitive golf. Friday, at the Ritz-Carlton Golf Club, he walked 18 holes in the pro-am (he could have used a cart), hit every shot and look very comfortable and loose.
Not a hint of a limp.
“We had a good time,” Woods said. “It was just a fun day.”
Tiger and Charlie were not in the same group Friday, so Dad tried to take a peek at his son, who was a hole ahead. Even though that wasn’t easy, Tiger still knows Charlie’s game enough to know it’s improving year to year and he’s hoping not to use his driver much during this weekend’s competition. Charlie will tee off in front of Tiger, who will hit from the championship tees.
“If he can move it out there and I hit iron shots, he gets all the putts,” the Jupiter Island resident said.
Putting it that way, and considering Tiger has dropped to No. 1,111 in the world ranking (really?), maybe Charlie will have to carry the team.
Tiger telling Charlie ‘just be you’
Tiger is constantly parenting and protecting his son, a sophomore on the Benjamin School golf team. The spotlight has been on Charlie in recent years as he’s started playing in more public events whether in high school or junior golf.
And that means the burden of carrying one of the most famous last names in golf history.
“I was always reminding him, just be you,” Tiger said. “Charlie is Charlie. Yes, he’s my son. He’s going to have my last name and it’s going to be part of his core. But I just want him to be just himself and be his own person.
“In this day and age where everyone is basically media, with all the phones, being constantly filmed and constantly people watching, that’s just part of his generation. And that’s part of the world that he has to maneuver through.”
Charlie finished the high school season ranked No. 11 in the state. He’s grown about 3½ inches since Team Woods tied for fifth last year at this event, six shots behind winners Bernhard Langer, of Boca Raton, and son, Jason. And he’s gotten “stronger, faster, heavier,” according to Dad.
“He’s a typical teenager,” Tiger said.
All that means is he’s closing the gap on Dad and that was the case when he recently beat Tiger for nine holes. Although Tiger would not go into the details of Charlie’s triumph, he did admit he may not be able to hold him off much longer.
“He has yet to beat me for 18 holes. That day is coming,” said Tiger, who turns 49 on Dec. 30. “I’m just prolonging it as long as I possibly can.”
Health could play a big part n that, but that’s been the case with Tiger for years now. We’ve been measuring his progress on the course by how he feels as much as how he plays.
Tiger played 11 competitive rounds in 2023 spread out over five events. He finished one, placing 60th at the Masters after shooting an 82 Saturday. His final round of the year was at the British Open, where he missed the cut.
About two months later, he was undergoing micro decompression surgery. Tiger has had four microdiscectomy procedures to treat lower back pain and nerve impingement.
“I struggled a lot with my back, and it’s a lot better, but I still have a long way to go,” Tiger said.
The Masters was a snapshot of what we may see more of moving forward. Tiger was well inside the cut line after an opening 73 and a second round 72 before admitting his lower back flared up and contributed to his worst-ever score at a major championship in the third round.
“The recovery has gotten to be the hardest part,” he said. “But over the course of rounds, weeks, months, it gets harder.”
Just like victory over his son one day will become.
Tom D’Angelo is a senior sports columnist and reporter for The Palm Beach Post. He can be reached at tdangelo@pbpost.com.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Tiger Woods, without hint of a limp, ready to compete with Charlie at PNC
