Although Tiger Woods was the center of attention as he practiced for the Open on Sunday, Sir Nick Faldo has downplayed the chances of the former world No. 1 to secure a fourth Claret Jug. Woods set out on the course early, alongside Justin Thomas. Woods had missed the cut at the Genesis Scottish Open and looked restricted in his on-course movements.
Unlike a little over 24-hours ago, when Woods took irons off the tees and did not hit a host of full shots, he had made a shot off the tee and was swinging at close to full tilt But he looked extremely uncomfortable, walking with a limp and struggling to pick the tee up out of the ground, according to eurosport.com.
Fans cannot be surprised at his limited mobility since it has only been slightly over 16 months since he nearly lost his leg in a rollover car crash. The 46-year-old has shown strong fortitude to recover since the accident but has only made two competitive appearances this season, once at the Masters where he finished 47th, and then at the PGA Championship where he withdrew due to pain in his leg.
Woods also elected to miss the US Open, hoping the time away from the field would give him a better chance of being fit for the Open on the Old Course at St Andrews—which he describes as his favorite course in the entire world, and where he has won two of his three Opens.
However, when it comes to Woods’ fitness to win the tournament, fellow pro golfer Nick Faldo – a winner of three Opens and six majors – feels there is little chance of the 15-time major winner lifting the Claret Jug next Sunday. “I don’t think there’s chances, no,” Faldo told Sky Sports News when asked if he felt Woods was a contender. “Physically, he played at Adare Manor and was in a cart for a couple of days to rest the leg. The physical challenge is just walking a golf course and even though St Andrews looks flat, there’s so many twisting undulations walking that course, it’s going to be physically really hard work for him. Even if Tiger was fit and strong, he doesn’t play much, and these kids [world’s top players] are young and strong. We don’t know what we’re going to get from Tiger, where he mentally is and what he’s thinking.”
