Arguably the greatest golfer that ever played the game expressed his sincere concern for arguably the greatest golfer that ever played the game.
On Monday golf icon Jack Nicklaus, speaking at the Creighton Farms Invitational, a charity tournament funding pediatric health care programs, said he doesn’t think Tiger Woods will be teeing it up on the PGA tour in the future. “He’ll have a very hard time. I don’t know whether Tiger will play much golf anymore,” he remarked.
“He might come back and play—I think it’d be pretty tough for him, after getting fused, and as many problems as he’s had recently. … His problems are more life problems than they are golf problems right now.”
The Golden Bear who stands alone as the all-time major champion winner with 18 victories added, “Whether he plays golf or not, I think he’s got an awful lot to offer the youth of the country and the game itself.”
Woods, the winner of 14 major championships and 79 wins on the Tour (six more than Nicklaus), was arrested for driving under the influence after Jupiter, Florida, police found him asleep in his car around 2 a.m. on Memorial Day. Woods, who ranked number one in the world of golf for a record 683 weeks beginning in 1997, committed himself to an outpatient rehabilitation facility in June.
According to USA Today, Woods took to Twitter on June 19, messaging that he is receiving “professional help” to manage his medications to help him deal with his back pain and sleeping disorder. Woods endured four surgeries on his back, including spinal vertebrae fusion, over the last several years.
“I hope he gets his life straightened out with the problems he’s had and be able to lead a normal life, but also use what he has done and his legacy to help a lot of kids and a lot of other people,” said Nicklaus.