Editor’s note: Senior writer Evan Rothman, who is at the Travelers Championship in Cromwell, Conn., got reaction June 18 from PGA Tour players to the news that Tiger Woods will undergo season-ending knee surgery.
Vijay Singh: “He’ll be missed. . . . It’s a shame for the Tour, because he was having a wonderful year. He needs to take care of it, especially if he wants to have a history-breaking career. I think he’s doing the right thing (taking the rest of the year off). He’s obviously got the best doctors advising him.”
Nick O’Hern: “Obviously, his health comes first. From the point of view of the Tour, it’s a big shame. He’s the biggest drawing card we have out here. We all want to compete against him and have the same chance that Rocco did. I wish him all the best. . . . I watched a little bit on the weekend and a few holes of the playoff Monday. It’s hard to know how much pain he was in. He was clearly limping around a bit. I’ve had knee surgery myself, and I was able to play after six weeks and it was OK. It was my lead knee as well, but obviously I don’t put as much pressure on my knee as he does.”
Jason Dufner: “Watching the Open, it’s not very surprising. You knew something was up. It’s pretty unfortunate for the game of golf and everybody who watches it. It’s probably pretty good for the players; it gives us a little bit more of a chance to win. It’s disappointing for him, and for fans in general.”
Johnson Wagner: “It’s obviously unfortunate, because he’s such a huge part of the Tour. It’s a big loss for the Tour, and for the Ryder Cup. I’m upset because I plan on making that team. Was it worth it for him to play? He won, but then again he’s given up two more majors (to play in 2008). It’s just really unfortunate. The U.S. Open means a lot to all the players, especially to Americans, and it’s at Torrey Pines, which is special to him and where he’s had so much success. And it was a great Open. Was it worth it for him? Probably so. Maybe he needed six months off.”
Scott McCarron: “I think it shows how incredible it was what he did last week. What an incredible mind-set to win the Open when you could tell it was bothering him pretty good. I’m sorry to hear he has to have another surgery; that’s the fourth one on the same knee. At the same time, we’re gonna keep playing (laughs). I can’t say I’m surprised by it, because I watched a lot of the tournament. He showed some of the pain he was in, and he’s not one to milk it. We hadn’t heard anything about it until after the Masters, but I’m sure it’s been bothering him for a while. Hopefully, this surgery will take care of all that needs to be taken care of. Playing was his decision, so you can’t call it into question, even if I understand that the doctors were telling him not to. I did think it was pretty quick to come back. I had elbow surgery, and it’s taken me 18 months to hit balls without pain. Any time you have surgery, it seems like it takes a year to feel right. It will probably never be the same as what it was, but hopefully it gets to where he can play. A knee’s a bad injury, but I think anything with the wrist or elbow is probably worse. You don’t hit the ground with it, which is basically what happens with a wrist or elbow (via the club). But he posts off that left leg pretty good, and you can see that he puts a lot of pressure on it. He’s in incredible shape, though, and I’m sure he’ll come back stronger than he was before.”
Notah Begay III: It wasn't a surprise to me. Typically, he’s played through a lot of pain. I know over the last two or three years he’s had some ailments that other players wouldn’t have played with. He understands the importance of pursuing the major championship (record). This is just an instance where he obviously came to a point where he couldn't push it anymore. I think it's a great decision for his career. As someone who's played with a lot of injuries over the last several years, it doesn't do you any good to push your body too hard for that long. Having dealt with the levels of pain I've dealt with over the last eight seasons, not having one healthy season, you wouldn't wise that on anyone, never mind your friend. My main concern is that he's healthy, both with his body and his mind. When that takes place, he's unbeatable.... There's no way he's rethinking his decision [to play the Open], not at all. He's one step closer to his lifelong goal. Any one of us out here would give a kidney to have our name on that trophy. The way he did it is admirable, and I don't think he'd change anything..... How's my own health? Just type three question marks.
Justin Rose: “I was surprised it was the rest of the year. I figured his next event would be the British Open. I guess it shows you how much he really was struggling last week. It’s disappointing for the Tour, but ultimately he’s got to look at the longevity of it all. It would have been far worse for the Tour if by trying to play one or two more events this year he’d hurt himself into the future. What he’s got to do now is look at how he can maximize the longevity of his career. . . . If I was to win the British Open in a month’s time, there’d be an asterisk next to it: Tiger Woods not in field. You know what I mean? You want to beat him. Obviously, there are more chances to win, and to win an event like this one helps your career. But ultimately what you work for is to beat the best. For sure, it’s one less guy to beat in the majors, because he’s always up there. But it would be a lot more satisfying to beat him. It’s like Rocco was saying last week: ‘I want Tiger.’ Because I want to see what I've got. That's how we all feel. . . . I hadn't thought about the Ryder Cup. Obviously, [the U.S. has] lost a huge asset there. The Ryder Cup will still be as competitive as ever. To lose your star player, well, that’s not great for them.’’
Kenny Perry: “It’s going to be tough for the sponsors, I think, and the Tour. Definitely, Tiger is our Tour, and when you lose your star player, it definitely hurts. There’s no question about it. . . . I feel bad now. I thought he was kind of – watching him, I thought it was more drama than actually being hurt. I was talking to people, and now I hear he’s got a torn ACL and a stress fracture or something or whatever. For a man to endure all that, it’s pretty incredible what he accomplished. We just hope he gets well and gets back out here. . . . It’s definitely an opportunity for us, for sure. Still, you want to beat the best. I think any of the competitors out here, you know, when you’re playing, you want to have Tiger in the field, because if you beat a field with Tiger in it, you’ve beaten the best field out there probably, because most of the time all the other big stars are with him.’’
Tim Finchem, PGA Tour commissioner (in a statement released by the Tour): “For an athlete as talented and competitive as Tiger Woods, taking the rest of the season off must have been an incredibly difficult, yet necessary decision, one that we understand and support completely. The fact that he needs additional surgery only makes his performance and victory at last week’s U.S. Open all the more impressive. First and foremost, our concern – as it would be for any of our players facing surgery or illness – is for Tiger’s health and overall well-being, both on and off the golf course. We wish him the best toward a speedy recovery.”
Jerry Kelly: “I know about playing after a knee surgery, and it is painful. . . . You can’t imagine the down-force he has on his left knee coming into the ball. I by no means brushed off what he was going through and thought he was putting on a show. He’s not one to put on a show about injury. A lot of us were speculating that he’s having surgery the week after the Open. We knew this wasn’t normal. . . . He’s a true athlete, and a tough S.O.B., and I think people realize that now, to win the U.S. Open with a torn ACL and a broken fibia.”
Posted: 6/18/2008
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