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'Never again': Tiger Woods' bombshell call on golf career

Pictured left, Tiger Woods hitting in practice and speaking with Golf Digest on the right.
Tiger Woods wants to return to competitive golf but has ruled out ever competing full-time on tour again. Pic: Twitter/Golf Digest

Tigers Woods has admitted that he hopes to return to professional golf but has ruled out ever competing full-time on tour again.

The 15-time major winner says he is still intent on playing tour events as he continues his recovery from a life-threatening car accident that left him fearing he would lose a leg.

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Just last week, Woods posted a clip on social media to his legion of followers, showing the progress he's made in recovery from the horrific accident.

The 45-year-old required surgery on open fractures to his lower right leg and further injuries to his foot and ankle after the single-vehicle accident in February, and said at one point he feared that his leg could be amputated.

Woods' video - shared on his official Twitter account last week and viewed more than seven million times - showed him hitting balls at a practice range in the United States.

While the 45-year-old completed a miraculous recovery from back surgery to win his 15th major title at the Masters in 2019, he ruled out the possibility of a repeat this time.

"I don't have to compete and play against the best players in the world to have a great life," Woods told Golf Digest.

"After my back fusion, I had to climb Mount Everest one more time. I had to do it, and I did.

"This time around, I don't think I'll have the body to climb Mount Everest and that's OK.

"I can still participate in the game of golf. I can still, if my leg gets OK, click off a tournament here or there.

"But as far as climbing the mountain again and getting all the way to the top, I don't think that's a realistic expectation of me.

"I think something that is realistic is playing the tour one day - never full-time, ever again... Pick and choose a few events a year and play around that."

Seen here, the site of the Tiger Woods crash in southern California in 2021.
Workers move Tiger Woods' vehicle after his shocking crash. (Mark J. Terrill for For The Times)

Tiger Woods making 'positive strides' in recovery

Woods, who was found to be travelling at almost twice the legal speed limit when he crashed, was hospitalised for weeks before returning to his home in Florida, where he continues to undergo extensive rehabilitation.

"It's been a hell of a road, it's been a long one and a sore one but I'm making some really positive strides," Woods said.

"I've had some really tough days and some setbacks here and there, but overall everything is progressing nicely."

Referring to his fears that his injuries were so severe he could lose his leg, Woods said: "I wouldn't say it was 50-50, but it was damn near there if I was going to walk out of that hospital with one leg."

Woods is scheduled to hold his first press conference since the accident at the Hero World Challenge event in Albany on Tuesday.

However, he cautioned against his return to public life being construed as a signal that he is nearing the start of his latest comeback attempt.

"I have so far to go - I'm not even at the half-way point," he said.

with AAP

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