Jack Nicklaus (left) has admitted he ‘feels bad’ for Tiger Woods after the star’s injury issues (Image: GETTY)
Jack Nicklaus has admitted he “feels bad” that has had to deal with a series of major injury setbacks throughout his golf career. Woods is extremely unlikely to topple Nicklaus at the top of golf’s all-time Major championship-winning standings as he currently trails his compatriot by three titles and is a shadow of the player he once was.
Nicklaus won a record 18 Majors during his illustrious career as he dominated the sport for the best part of three decades in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. Woods appeared to be on track to break the record after triumphing in eight Majors in the space of six years between 1997 and 2002. The 49-year-old had won another six titles by 2008 to take his overall tally to 14, but struggled with fitness problems as his career developed. Woods’ came at the 2019 Masters as he won his fifth green jacket. But he hasn’t come close to winning another one since.
Woods was quizzed about catching Nicklaus after his second round at the TPC Harding Park in the PGA Championship five years ago. And the American explained: “There’s not as many [opportunities to win] as when I first started playing.
“The reality is that the golf courses are getting bigger. They are getting longer. The margin between making the cut and the lead is a lot smaller than it used to be. Used to be sometimes 12 to 15 shots.
“Now we had, what, nine shots here? It’s just different. It’s getting tighter and it’s getting harder to win events – but you look at the leaderboard of most Major championships, you see the same guys.”
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Tiger Woods won his 15th Major at the Masters in 2019 (Image: GETTY)
Woods has been forced to miss a host of Majors over the years due to injury issues and has been particularly hampered by back problems.
He ruptured his ACL in 2007 and then tore his Achilles tendon the following year.
The blockbuster star has also been involved in two car crashes, with the first one occurring in 2009 and the second one taking place in 2021.
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And discussing the all-time record at the Cognizant Classic, Nicklaus told the Golf Channel: “If he remained healthy I think he would’ve gotten it, but he didn’t remain healthy.”
Nicklaus then added that he “feels bad” for the talented ace because of the serious nature of his injuries. And the 85-year-old added: “He’s had a relatively good career.”
Woods has played in 14 of the 22 Majors since his 2019 Masters triumph. But he failed to make the cut in seven of those tournaments and was forced to withdraw from two others before the end.