Tiger Woods on Improved Play: 'I Wasn't Sure If I'd Have a Chance to Win Again'

Ahead of his first U.S. Open appearance in three years and playing his best golf in a half-decade, Tiger Woods admitted to having some doubt about whether he could ever contend on the PGA Tour again.

"I've had my opportunities and am thankful for that. I wasn't sure if I'd have a chance to win again," Woods told reporters Tuesday.

Woods, 42, has not played a weekend at a U.S. Open since 2013. He missed a majority of the last four years due to debilitating back issues that threatened his career and rendered him a shell of himself when he was on the course.

Once considered a lock to break Jack Nicklaus' record of 18 major championships, Woods has not won on the biggest stage in a decade. His last major win—his 14th—came at the 2008 U.S. Open.

"I don't like that feeling. Over the last 10 years I haven't done it, but the first few years of my career I did well," Woods said.

Woods has two top-five finishes in 2018 and has not missed a cut since the Genesis Open in February. While that seems like damning with faint praise for the most dominant golfer the sport has ever seen, it's a significant achievement for Woods. At this time last year, it was possible we'd never see him play golf again, let alone contend for a championship.

The 2018 U.S. Open is being played at New York's Shinnecock Hills, which last hosted the event in 2004. Woods finished in a tie for 17th, 14 strokes behind winner Retief Goosen.