Tiger Woods Injury: Updates on Golfer's Recovery from Back Surgery

Golf legend Tiger Woods is taking it slow in his return from a second microdiscectomy in September as he prepares for yet another lengthy rehabilitation process to return to the course in 2016.

Continue for updates.

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Woods Undergoes Follow-Up Procedure on Back 

Friday, Oct. 30

Woods announced he underwent a second procedure on his injured back: 

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"It's one of those things that had to be done," Tiger said. "I have an outstanding team of doctors, and I'll be back as soon as I can."

Woods is on bed rest and will miss his final design visit Thursday, Nov. 5, at Bluejack National, a Tiger Woods Design golf course outside Houston.

"I'm extremely disappointed not going to Bluejack, but I'm very excited about our grand opening in the spring," Tiger said. "It's a fantastic course, and we're very proud of our first U.S. design." 

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Woods Discusses Timeline for Recovery, Health Status

Tuesday, Oct. 20

Woods spoke at a press conference Tuesday in Mexico City ahead of the Bridgestone America's Golf Cup and indicated he hasn't yet begun rehab for his latest surgery to address back problems, per ESPN.com's Bob Harig:

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I feel good, I'm just stiff; that's the way it is after surgery. [...] I haven't been allowed to do much of anything. I'll start my rehab soon, but it's a long and tedious process. The last time it took me a long time to come back. Some of the guys who have had it (microdiscectomy) done said it took them over a year to be pain free. I hope it doesn't take me that long to be pain free.

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Woods' first microdiscectomy came in March 2014, yet he returned that June at the Quicken Loans National and competed in three additional tournaments that PGA Tour season. He withdrew from the 2014 WGC-Bridgestone Invitational and missed the cut at the subsequent PGA Championship.

Although he showed flashes of improvement during the 2014-15 campaign, Woods acknowledged he tried to will himself through tournaments when it may have been best to remain outside the ropes:

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I tried to fight through some stuff this year and it wasn't a lot of fun and I was in that much pain. On top of that, my first back operation, I was also in the midst of changing my swing, too. It was a tough situation to go through that.

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But I can't practice more if I can't rehab. I can't practice as much. I went most of last season (like that). Then the last time I played very well. It's just a matter of me getting healthy enough to go out and play

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PGA Tour player Graham DeLaet, who nearly had his career derailed after undergoing a microdiscectomy, stated last year it took him a full year to recover, per GolfChannel.com's Ryan Lavner. Even then, three years removed from the operation, DeLaet acknowledged he may never again be 100 percent healthy.

"I don't know how many months that it's going to be," added Woods in regard to his timeline for a return to competition, per Harig. "But it won't be short. It'll take months of hard work."

In light of Woods' comments, he seems to be acknowledging he isn't the exception to the laws of nature.

Woods has had the opposite mindset in the past—and that confidence brought him raging success in his golfing prime, when he was running away with wins on a regular basis. The mental toughness that helped grow Woods' legend has now cost him and threatens his longevity.

Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images

As he approaches the age of 40 in December, Woods isn't as limber as he once was. Although he's quite different than DeLaet from a physical standpoint and in terms of golf accomplishments, DeLaet's timeline is still a case worth examining as Woods tries to bounce back from a second major back surgery.

One silver lining is the fact Woods posted a top-10 finish in his last PGA Tour start at the Wyndham Championship, suggesting his swing changes are finally clicking into place.

The big, perpetual question is whether Woods will ever be healthy enough to legitimately challenge Jack Nicklaus' all-time major victories record.

The score is 18 to 14 in favor of Nicklaus and has been since the 2008 U.S. Open. Woods' hopes of catching the Golden Bear seem to be fading faster now as his status for 2015-16 and beyond is in considerable doubt.