Tour News

David Feherty “not sure Tiger will come back”

Published

10 years ago

May 25, 2016

Another golf media luminary is asked to weigh in on the battered Tiger Woods’ return to competition, and another golf media luminary obliges. And because headlines featuring the keywords “Tiger Woods” outperform all others, you’ve got a story.

Except in this case, the luminary in question, David Feherty, is arguably golf’s most interesting, candid, and insightful (and funny). So we’ll listen.

Feherty, speaking in Dublin at GolfNow’s “Golf for Life” event (are you surprised it isn’t “fore”?), was asked about the former world No. 1. And while headlines in the golf media sphere proclaim that Feherty has doubts about Woods return, the analyst’s reasoning behind those doubts is well worth noting.

“I am not sure that Tiger will come back because it is a nerve in his back,” Feherty said. “It’s not muscular or skeletal. It’s not something you can deal with in a physical way.”

Regarding how Woods looks, Feherty offered:

“He is in phenomenal shape – just ripped as usual. But he is not able to make a full pass at it. I saw him a few weeks ago in Houston and he hadn’t played in five months and he hit some good shots and some awful skanky looking things.

“I think he has a feeling that if he doesn’t make it back this time, he might be done from a physical standpoint…But he is too stubborn and too good and too physically gifted to be able to just give it up. He loves it too much.”

Woods most recently addressed the subject of his return to competitive golf at an event at Congressional Country Club on May 16, saying:

“I have been practicing at home, and I’m progressing nicely. I’m hoping to play. That’s the overriding question I keep hearing: When are you coming back, when are you playing? I get it all the time. If I knew, I’d tell, you, because it’d be fun to know.”

The 40-year-old golfer hasn’t teed it up since the Wyndham Championship last August. And on an unrelated note, at the same GolfNow event, Feherty also said,

“It’s hard for me to commentate on Rory in the U.S. without a massive boner because I love the kid and want him to do well.”

So there’s that, too.

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Ben Alberstadt

Ben Alberstadt is the Editor-in-Chief at GolfWRX, where he’s led editorial direction and gear coverage since 2018. He first joined the site as a freelance writer in 2012 after years spent working in pro shops and bag rooms at both public and private golf courses, experiences that laid the foundation for his deep knowledge of equipment and all facets of this maddening game. Based in Philadelphia, Ben’s byline has also appeared on PGATour.com, Bleacher Report...and across numerous PGA DFS and fantasy golf platforms. Off the course, Ben is a committed cat rescuer and, of course, a passionate Philadelphia sports fan. Follow him on Instagram @benalberstadt.

19 Comments

ooffa

May 27, 2016 at 10:05 am

Feherty may not be sure, but I am. Tiger is not coming back. His abuse of steroids has ruined his body. He should try to get a weekend game at the local muni, that’s all the competition he has left to pursue.

Reply Report comment
- william elliott
  
  Jun 18, 2016 at 3:11 am
  
  He didn’t use steroids. I had a build similar to Tiger without steroids. Diet, exercise and legal supplements like creatine are all you need to have a physique like that. 6′ 1″ 185lb is not a steroid body.
  
  Reply Report comment
Double Mocha Man

May 26, 2016 at 4:50 pm

I’m still holding out for watching Tiger on the Champion’s Tour…

Reply Report comment
- Officer Smizzle
  
  May 26, 2016 at 8:06 pm
  
  What’s the loft on tiger’s putter?
  
  Reply Report comment
Adam

May 25, 2016 at 9:50 pm

I wonder how uncomfortable Rory is with that last quote. I personally thought it was awesome.

Reply Report comment
Johny Thunder

May 25, 2016 at 7:29 pm

to Jim Jacob’s comment from Facebook; I don’t see a *single* thing Feherty said here about Tiger that was humorous or trying to be humorous. He’s giving his honest opinion and not cracking wise about Tiger’s health problems. Sounds like you don’t like Feherty, so you make up your mind about anything he says without actually listening. The only thing in that article he says jokingly is the Rory comment, and I think you’d find that’s straight from the heart (if a little exaggerated).

Reply Report comment
Park Ave

May 25, 2016 at 2:42 pm

I really think Woods could benefit from Dr. Sarno. I really think its a subconscious mental problem. I cannot believe how a $7 book got rid of my chronic back pain in a matter of weeks.

Reply Report comment
- mlecuni
  
  May 25, 2016 at 3:19 pm
  
  +1
  
  So many case at work, were people on stress for years have back pain. What they often don’t know is that it’s related to your internal energy and meridians.
  
  Reply Report comment
  - Jay
    
    May 25, 2016 at 6:24 pm
    
    Back pain in the general public is completely different than a professional athlete who has been swinging a golf club nearly every day of his life. Tiger had a rather aggressive/violent swing for many years which is likely the cause of his back issues. I’m going to go out on a limb and say that it’s not his “meridians”.
    
    Reply Report comment
    - Johnny
      
      May 26, 2016 at 1:24 am
      
      Tiger’s back pain is more likely from his insane military training with the Seals (including Halo jumps) or his obsessive work outs, than meridians or his golf swing.
      
      Reply Report comment
      - Sc
        
        May 26, 2016 at 11:22 am
        
        No, it’s from his skirt chasing
        
        Reply Report comment
Avery

May 25, 2016 at 2:00 pm

I do think there is some permanent damage to Tiger’s back that is a given, but I would never rule him out. I know he has struggled, and when I say struggled trust me I have seen it all. But it is just hard for me to believe that he won’t ever come back. I think he will win a couple of tournaments in the next couple of years. I could be wrong, its just so hard for me to give up on the guy that I looked up to so much growing up. I just hope that he has one more run in him.

Reply Report comment
Jack Nash

May 25, 2016 at 1:11 pm

After watching Tiger walk up to last weeks Presser for his Quicken loans Tourney I knew he didn’t look good then. I’ve had a ton of back problems over the years and watching him walk up that incline towards the camera area I said to myself, there’s a guy who doesn’t look physically well. Then after that he went and rinsed some balls on the short par 3 you could tell all things aren’t as smooth as his camp would want us to believe. Too bad. I’m worried more about his long term health than coming back to play golf.

Reply Report comment
cgasucks

May 25, 2016 at 12:36 pm

What ever happened to Feherty’s nose?!!? It is more pointed and narrow compared to 20 years ago. Can anyone please enlighten me?

Reply Report comment
- Pt
  
  May 25, 2016 at 12:59 pm
  
  He quit drinking, so the “drinker’s droop” is gone. And of course Hollywood’s make-up and touch up doesn’t hurt either lol
  
  Reply Report comment
  - cgasucks
    
    May 25, 2016 at 1:28 pm
    
    Drinking can actually change the shape of one’s nose?!!?!?
    
    Reply Report comment
    - Sc
      
      May 26, 2016 at 11:26 am
      
      Just do a search for “drinker’s nose” and look at the images
      
      Reply Report comment
Feherty's Large Mouth bASS

May 25, 2016 at 12:22 pm

When was the last time Feherty was right about anything?

Reply Report comment
steve

May 25, 2016 at 11:17 am

It’s obvious that this is most likely not going away

Reply Report comment

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Photos from the 2026 PGA Championship

Published

2 days ago

May 11, 2026

GolfWRX Staff

GolfWRX is on site for the second major of 2026: The PGA Championship from Aronimink in Newtown Square, Pennsylvania.

The tournament’s location, just outside Philadelphia, and its status as a major championship mean GolfWRXers are in for a treat: WITBs from a strong field, custom gear celebrating the PGA Championship, and the rich culture of the City of Brotherly Love — we have noted a relative absence of cheesesteak-themed items thus far this week, but most of the rest of the usual suspects are well represented.

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