In the press conference prior to the Hero World Challenge in the Bahamas a couple of weeks ago, where he returned to competition after almost nine months of absence, Tiger Woods appeared half confident, half sceptical about how his leg, which suffered severe damage in a car accident, would respond to walking the course for four full rounds in four days.
The Californian had tested himself at home, but not at the pace that the highest competition demands. And although, in general terms, he passed the test, his final result, at par on the 18th place in a tournament with 20 participants, confirmed that his game is still a bit ‘rusty’. His plan, if nothing goes wrong, is to play one event a month in 2024, but before that, he will test himself again in a theoretically festive event, but one in which he will encounter a small (or not so small) adversity.
The weather is the trap that crosses this week in the path of Tiger Woods. The Californian will compete in the PNC Championship in pairs with his son Charlie. An event in which both have fought for victory in the past, but which on this occasion, if the weather forecasts are fulfilled, will become a battle against the elements, with heavy rain, thunderstorms and wind in Orlando, Florida, the venue of the tournament that closes the year in the United States.
Temperatures between 14 and 22 degrees Celsius are expected, an 86% chance of rain on Saturday and 77º on Sunday, adding thunderstorms and even the possibility of small floods, and winds between 26 and 27 kilometres per hour. Conditions that will presumably turn the Ritz-Carlton Golf Club into a much heavier field, increasing the physical demand for Tiger, who is already looking at the PGA Tour calendar for next year.
🚨☢️ @NUCLRGOLF Confidence is increasing for a significant storm to move though the Florida Peninsula and Orlando area this weekend.
Heaviest rain will be on Saturday with a slight risk for Flash Flooding due to 2 to 3 inches of rainfall. It will be windy as well.
— Michael Anand (@NUCLRGOLFWX) December 13, 2023
The case of Woods will, logically, be the one that attracts the most media attention in this waterlogged PNC Championship, unless the meteorologists have not hit the nail on the head. But not the only one, as the tournament brings together some veterans such as John Daly, Nick Faldo, Jim Furyk, Retief Goosen, Bernhard Langer, Vijay Singh, Steve Strecker or Lee Trevino, among others. A new test of fire to check the resistance of Tiger‘s leg after his latest fusion surgery.
