Woods says he hopes to play next week at Bay Hill

[March 13, 2012]  JUPITER, Fla. (AP) -- Tiger Woods said Monday night his left Achilles tendon is mildly strained and he is hopeful he can still play next week at Bay Hill.

Woods withdrew from the Cadillac Championship at Doral on Sunday after hitting his tee shot on the 12th hole.

"Got good news from doc tonight," he posted on his Twitter account. "Only mild strain of left Achilles. Can resume hitting balls late in week and hopeful for next week."

Woods is scheduled to play the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill, which starts March 22, his final tournament before the Masters. He has played Augusta National every year since 1995.

He said his left Achilles tendon, which caused him to miss two majors last year, felt tight as he warmed up on the practice range before the final round of the Cadillac Championship, and it got worse from there.

It was the second time in 10 months that Woods had to withdraw from a tournament because of his Achilles. He also left after shooting a 42 on the front nine of The Players Championship last May, causing him to sit out three months until it was completely healed. There were some in his camp who did not want him to compete in The Players to give the injury more time.

Woods said in a statement Sunday after withdrawing, "In the past, I may have tried to continue to play, but this time, I decided to do what I thought was necessary."

[Associated Press]

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