He also seemed eager for the challenge of going through rehab to get to a point where he can compete again — even if it’s limited.
“I may not be tournament-sharp in the sense I haven’t played tournaments, but I think if you practice correctly and you do it correctly, that I’ve come off surgeries before, I’ve come off long layoffs and I’ve won or come close to winning before.
“I won’t have the opportunity to practice, given the condition of my leg, and build up.
Most medical people who have been interviewed about the injuries he suffered have maintained that it would be a yearlong recovery.
It is quite possible that Woods has bigger goals and that, for one of the rare times, he is trying to tamp down the expectations — perhaps even his own.
I’ll chip and putt any of these guys, but the golf courses are longer than just a chip-and-putt course.
“I’ve been fortunate enough to have won 82 events on this tour and 15 major championships and been a part of the World Golf Championships, the start of them and the end of them.
It was nearly nine months since the crash.
He deflected questions about the accident, saying the details are in the police report and that he didn’t remember anything that happened.
“Am I going to put my family through it again, am I going to put myself out there again? We had a talk within the family, all of us sat down and said if this leg cooperates and I get to a point where I can play the Tour, is it OK with you guys if I try and do it?” Woods said.
But we’re talking about going out there and playing against the world’s best on the most difficult golf courses under the most difficult conditions.
I’ve got to get my leg to a point where that decision can be made.