Woods amongst top players saying no to Honda Classic

If you were waiting for news about Tiger’s return to tournament golf, it seems you are going to have to wait a little bit longer.

The AP reports that the 15-time major champion won’t be returning to the PGA Tour this week at the Honda Classic – a tournament that is literally just a short drive from his house and those of many other PGA Tour players, who make Florida their home.

Thomas won the Honda Classic title in 2018 (Credit: PGA Tour)

Woods will miss the tournament alongside the likes of Rory McIlroy, Justin Thomas and Dustin Johnson. Current World No.2, Brooks Koepka, is the only player from the World top-10, who will play the $7 million event at PGA National in Palm Beach Gardens.

Both Woods and McIlroy are skipping the event for the second consecutive year while Thomas won’t make an appearance for the first time since he arrived full-time on the PGA Tour in 2015. He won the title in 2018 and finished third in 2016 but has also missed the cut twice.

Wedged between the WGC-Mexico Championship and the Arnold Palmer Invitational, the Honda Classic sits in a difficult position on the PGA Tour schedule.

Some players like to ramp up their schedule heading into the first major fo the year at the US Masters, while others like to carefully pick and choose their appearances in order to be in peak condition for Augusta. And with the WGC event last week in Mexico and then the Arnold Palmer next week, the Honda Classic is a perfect opportunity to take a break for those at the top.

The good news for fans is that six of the world top 20 will tee it up including Tommy Fleetwood, Justin Rose, Louis Oosthuizen and world No.25 and perennial crowd favourite Rickie Fowler.