Woods not in field for PGA Tour's return next week

[June 06, 2020]    (Reuters) - Tiger Woods will not compete next week when the PGA Tour swings back into action after a three-month COVID-19 hiatus as he was not listed in the field released on Friday for the event in Fort Worth, Texas.

Tiger Woods hits out of the fourteenth hole bunker during the second round of the The Genesis Invitational golf tournament at Riviera Country Club. Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

The 15-times major champion did not commit to the Charles Schwab Challenge at Colonial Country Club by the 5 p.m. ET (2100 GMT) deadline, and thus will not be part of a stacked field headlined by the top five golfers in the world.

Woods' lone Colonial appearance was in 1997 but there was a sense he would return this year given the long layoff since the PGA Tour shut down in mid-March due to the novel coronavirus outbreak.

The 44-year-old Masters champion last competed on the PGA Tour in mid-February when he laboured through a final-round 77 at the Genesis Invitational where he finished last among players who made the cut.

Woods, one win shy of a record-breaking 83 PGA Tour wins, then skipped a number of tournaments with back issues but did play a May 24 charity match with Phil Mickelson and Super Bowl-winning quarterbacks Tom Brady and Peyton Manning.

(Reporting by Frank Pingue in Toronto; Editing by Christian Radnedge)

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