The last time we saw Tiger Woods in public was Monday afternoon as he limped toward the players' parking lot at Torrey Pines, and if all goes well, the next time we see him could be the same place -- next February.
Sometimes wincing, often limping, Woods won the U.S. Open at Torrey Pines with stress fractures in his leg, he revealed on his website Wednesday, where he also announced he would not play again this year because he needs surgery to repair a torn ligament in his troubled left knee. He also has a double stress fracture in his left tibia.
With recovery time from the surgery to repair a torn anterior cruciate ligament expected to range from six to eight months, it's possible that Woods could come back at the Buick Invitational at Torrey Pines the first week of February.
How the PGA Tour will fare without Woods, its champion breadwinner and billboard face, for an extended period is far from a positive scenario.
"For an athlete as talented and as competitive as Tiger Woods, taking the rest of the season off must have been an incredibly difficult, yet necessary decision, one that we understand and support completely," PGA Tour Commissioner Tim Finchem said in a statement. "The fact that he needed additional surgery only makes his performance and victory at last week's U.S. Open all the more impressive."
When the surgery will take place has not been made public, but when it occurs, it will be Woods' third surgical procedure on his knee in the last five years.
His most recent surgery was done by Thomas Rosenberg in Park City, Utah, on April 15, two days after Woods finished second at the Masters. Rosenberg repaired cartilage damage.
In 2002, Woods had fluid drained from around the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee and also had a benign cyst removed.
The ACL surgery is probably the least of Woods' problems with his left knee, according to Dr. Neal ElAttrache, director of sports medicine with the Kerlan-Jobe Orthopaedic Clinic and the team doctor for the Dodgers.
"His pressing problem is cartilage damage on the lateral side of his knee under his kneecap," ElAttrache said. "ACL's can be fixed and stabilized, but the cartilage surface of the joint, that's unforgiving.
"It can sometimes be improved by doing microfracture surgery, but that part of his knee is always going to take a beating. This will be something he deals with the rest of his career."
