Tiger Woods turns 50, now eligible for PGA Tour Champions - ESPN

Tiger Woods turned 50 on Tuesday, making the 15-time major championship winner eligible to compete on the PGA Tour Champions circuit once he recovers from his latest health setbacks.

Woods hasn't publicly said whether he intends to play on the former Senior PGA Tour, which allows golfers to use carts and has a 54-hole format at most tournaments outside of the 72-hole majors.

This past season was the first time Woods didn't compete in a single tournament on the PGA Tour. He was scheduled to compete in the Genesis Invitational but pulled out, saying he wasn't ready to compete after the death of his mother, Kultida, on Feb. 4.

Then Woods ruptured his left Achilles tendon in March while ramping up training and practice at home in Florida for the Masters. He had what is believed to be his seventh back surgery Oct. 10 to replace a disk in his lower back that caused pain and mobility issues.

During a news conference at the Hero World Challenge in the Bahamas on Dec. 2, Woods said he had only recently started putting and chipping and wasn't close to being able to take full swings.

«Once I get a feel for practicing, exploding, playing, the recovery process, then I can assess where I'm going to play and how much I'll play,» Woods said. «I'm a ways away from that part of it and that type of decision, that type of commitment level.»

If not for Woods' myriad injuries, he'd probably still have plenty of golf left in the tank after reaching the half-century mark. Phil Mickelson became the oldest major championship winner at 50 when he won the 2021 PGA Championship at Kiawah Island, South Carolina.

Injuries have been Woods' biggest opponent in recent years. He has competed in only 11 PGA Tour tournaments in the past five seasons since