Woods opts out as PGA Tour returns next week

Tiger Woods will not compete next week when the PGA Tour swings back into action after a three-month COVID-19 hiatus as he was not listed in the field released on Friday for the event in Fort Worth, Texas.

The 15-times major champion did not commit to the Charles Schwab Challenge at Colonial Country Club by the 5 p.m. ET (2100 GMT) deadline, and thus will not be part of a stacked field headlined by the top five golfers in the world.

Woods' lone Colonial appearance was in 1997 but there was a sense he would return this year given the long layoff since the PGA Tour shut down in mid-March due to the novel coronavirus outbreak.

The 44-year-old Masters champion last competed on the PGA Tour in mid-February when he laboured through a final-round 77 at the Genesis Invitational where he finished last among players who made the cut.

Woods, one win shy of a record-breaking 83 PGA Tour wins, then skipped a number of tournaments with back issues but did play a May 24 charity match with Phil Mickelson and Super Bowl-winning quarterbacks Tom Brady and Peyton Manning.