Evidence continues to mount that Tiger Woods' demise isn't close at hand, despite at least one report to the contrary.
Hall of Famer Jack Nicklaus offered the latest testimony Sunday as the 18-time major winner said Woods appeared "very healthy" at a dinner party Thursday at Nicklaus' house, where he and his wife, Barbara, hosted a gathering of U.S. Ryder Cup candidates.
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"He looked very good," Nicklaus said while talking with reporters at the Honda Classic in South Florida (via Reuters). "He looked very healthy and he really misses playing. So that's good. He says he was feeling great, and he was able to stand over a putt and chip now without having any leg pain and so forth. We didn’t really talk a whole lot about it."
A recent report said Woods had suffered a setback from his most recent back surgeries that left him extremely limited physically.
And, in fact, he hasn't played in competition since August (he was at Nicklaus' dinner in his capacity as a Ryder Cup assistant captain).
Despite his upbeat assessment of how Woods looked — and, to be clear, looking good at a dinner party is a far cry from the demands of competitive golf — Nicklaus said a return to competition wasn't imminent for Woods, who underwent back surgery in September and had a follow-up procedure in October.
Still, Nicklaus understands why Woods is circumspect about giving updates, outside of the video he posted to refute the setback story (via GolfChannel.com): “I think he’s pretty private about what his situation is, and I don’t blame him, because every time he opens his mouth, there’s nothing but articles written about speculation about Tiger.”
Nicklaus said he hopes Woods just continues to make progress.
“So [I said] I wish you well, and I hope you get healthy, hope you get to play, hope you get out there as soon as you feel like you can play,” Nicklaus said. “I hope you do well.”
