Calls mount after Tiger's latest injury
The hosts of a popular Fox Sports radio show are calling for Tiger Woods to retire.
The legendary golfer announced on March 11 that he had successfully undergone surgery for a ruptured left Achilles tendon. “I am back home now and plan to focus on my recovery and rehab, thank you for all the support,” Woods posted on social media.
A typical recovery time for Achilles tendon surgery is four to six months, but for someone of Woods’s age with his injury history it could be six to nine months. Woods has had six back surgeries and knee surgeries, not counting those associated with his car crash. He’s previously had Achilles problems.
The latest injury will keep him from competing in The Masters at Augusta National in April, an event from which he had to withdraw in 2024. The announcement led some in sports media to call for him to retire, among them Rob Parker and Kelvin Washington, cohosts of Fix Sports Radio’s “The Odd Couple.”
“I’ve got a message. This is a public service announcement to Tiger Woods and to all golfers and just people in general. Tiger Woods should retire,” Parker said.
“Enough already, stop it. I mean, come on. The last time Tiger Woods was good and playing golf out of his mind, sports writers were using typewriters! Stop it. It’s been a long time, you’ve got kids in college now who don’t remember the great Tiger Woods.”
“He’s a shell of himself. He’s a broken shell of himself,” Parker SaId. “It’s disheartening to hear the news over and over and over. Tiger is banged up. Tiger is hurt. Tiger is injured.
“I’m dead serious. You’re not going to catch the record for the most Maters, er, most majors. It’s done. It ain’t happening…. ‘I need just four more to pass Jack.’ No. It ain’t happening.
It’s been six years since Woods finished in the top 20
“Why continue to do this? It’s not about money. He’s got all that. He’s one of the greatest golfers who ever played. Most people would make him No. 1 when it’s all said and done. The start to his career was as great a start as great as anybody. Any sport. Anybody. He’s Tiger! You don’t have to use Woods. Enough. I’m serious. Why? The injuries, the beating that he took from his ex-wife with the golf club and all that. It’s been all downhill. And Tiger Woods to me is now a disappointment because it’s always bad news.”
Washington chimed in, noting that although Woods hasn’t finished in the top 20 in six years, He may be hoping to hang on long enough to play in a professional event with his son, Charlie Woods.
“I do think that if there’s something that’s keeping him in the game, it’s seeing LeBron James and Bronny James have that moment. I think if you see Tiger Woods, all the troubles he’s been through, heading for almost 20 years now, right? The personal life issues, the physical issues, the losing…when do we see him at his happiest? When he’s doing anything that involves Charlie. He’s thrilled out there!”
Doug Ferguson, who covers golf for The Associated Press, wrote that the British Open last July was the last time Woods played against top competition. He played with his son in the 36-hole PNC Championship in December. Woods also has played his TGL indoor circuit, the 18-hole Seminole Pro-Member last week and a round with President Donald Trump a month ago, Ferguson wrote.
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