PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Tiger Woods had a less invasive surgery for a ruptured Achilles tendon on Tuesday, which will keep him out of the Masters and leaves in question whether he can play in any other major championship the rest of the year.
Woods posted the development on his social media accounts without saying how long he expected to be out or any other details except that the surgery went well.
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FILE - Tiger Woods walks to the first green during a practice for the Masters golf tournament at Augusta National Golf Club, Tuesday, April 4, 2023, in Augusta, Ga. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File)
FILE - Tiger Woods walks on the first hole during the first round of the Masters golf tournament at Augusta National Golf Club on Thursday, April 6, 2023, in Augusta, Ga. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip, File)
FILE - Tiger Woods walks to the green on the fifth hole during final round at the Masters golf tournament at Augusta National Golf Club Sunday, April 14, 2024, in Augusta, Ga. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel, File)
FILE - Tiger Woods lines up a putt on the seventh green during the final round of The Players Championship golf tournament Sunday, March 17, 2019, in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky, File)
FILE - Tiger Woods flips his club after his shot to the 10th green during the final round of The Players Championship golf tournament Sunday, March 17, 2019, in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky, File)
“As I began to ramp up my own training and practice at home, I felt a sharp pain in my left Achilles, which was deemed to be ruptured,” Woods said.
He said he had a minimally invasive Achilles tendon repair for a ruptured tendon that the doctor said went smoothly. Such surgeries involve smaller incisions, and the recovery time is quicker. But most recoveries take at least a month before someone can even put weight on their foot.
Two-time Masters champion Bernhard Langer had a tear in his Achilles tendon last year that kept him out for three months.
Dr. Charlton Stucken of the Hospital for Special Surgery in West Palm Beach performed the surgery and said in the post, “The surgery went smoothly, and we expect a full recovery.”
The Masters is April 10-13.
Woods set the tournament record last year by making the cut for the 24th time in a row. He missed the cut in the other three majors in 2024. The British Open in July was the last time he played against top competition. He played with his son in the 36-hole PNC Championship in December. Woods also has played his TGL indoor circuit, the 18-hole Seminole Pro-Member last week and a round with President Donald Trump a month ago.
Woods entered the Genesis Invitational at Torrey Pines until withdrawing because he was still processing the Feb. 4 death of his mother, Kultida.
Woods had a sixth back surgery last September. He had issues with the Achilles tendon before, injuring the left one from hitting a shot at the Masters with an awkward stance. He also cited the left Achilles tendon in withdrawing from The Players Championship in 2011, when he was out for two months.
Woods badly damaged his right leg and ankle in a February 2021 car crash outside Los Angeles.
AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf
FILE - Tiger Woods walks to the first green during a practice for the Masters golf tournament at Augusta National Golf Club, Tuesday, April 4, 2023, in Augusta, Ga. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File)
FILE - Tiger Woods walks on the first hole during the first round of the Masters golf tournament at Augusta National Golf Club on Thursday, April 6, 2023, in Augusta, Ga. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip, File)
FILE - Tiger Woods walks to the green on the fifth hole during final round at the Masters golf tournament at Augusta National Golf Club Sunday, April 14, 2024, in Augusta, Ga. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel, File)
FILE - Tiger Woods lines up a putt on the seventh green during the final round of The Players Championship golf tournament Sunday, March 17, 2019, in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky, File)
FILE - Tiger Woods flips his club after his shot to the 10th green during the final round of The Players Championship golf tournament Sunday, March 17, 2019, in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky, File)
MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — Memphis general manager Zach Kleiman said Saturday the decision to fire coach Taylor Jenkins with nine games remaining in the regular season with the franchise firmly in the playoff chase was “mine and mine only" and in the Grizzlies' best interests.
Kleiman spoke to reporters after the Grizzlies' pregame shootaround for Saturday night's game against the Los Angeles Lakers — barely 24 hours after Memphis announced firing Jenkins in his sixth season with the Grizzlies. Memphis named Tuomas Iisalo as the interim coach with the Helsinki, Finland, native in his first season coaching in the NBA.
“I came to the conclusion this was in the best interest of the team, and urgency is a core principle of ours so decided to go on with the move,” Kleiman said.
The Memphis GM spoke for less than three minutes, and no Grizzlies spoke after the shootaround. They won't be available until later Saturday at the usual pregame open locker room session when Iisalo speaks to the media for the first time in his new role.
Asked if he hopes making this move now with the Grizzlies currently fifth in the Western Conference starting a stretch with eight of the final nine opponents either playoff clubs or contending for a play-in spot helps Memphis salvage the season, Kleiman said he is focused on how the Grizzlies operate. It's still possible, at least mathematically, that Memphis could get back to No. 2 in the West, and it’s highly unlikely that the Grizzlies will fall into the play-in tournament range.
“I'm responsible for everything,” Kleiman said. “I'm responsible for coaching. I'm responsible for the roster. I'm not trying to absolve myself of anything. I'm excited to see what this team can do the rest of the way, but this was the conclusion that I came to that this was in the best interest of the team and we push forward with this group.”
Kleiman said no players were consulted about the move to fire Jenkins. Kleiman helped hire Jenkins in June 2019 after his own promotion to executive vice president of basketball operations. The GM also did not answer a question about what he wants from Memphis' next coach.
Jenkins had been the fifth longest-tenured coach with his current club in the league, behind only San Antonio’s Gregg Popovich, Miami’s Erik Spoelstra, Golden State’s Steve Kerr and Denver’s Michael Malone — all of them having won NBA titles. In this season with a maturing roster, the Grizzlies' results against the NBA's best weren't good.
The Grizzlies were 0-4 against Oklahoma City, losing those games by 24, 13, 17 and 21 points. They’re 3-6 so far this season against Houston, Denver and the Lakers, the next three teams ahead of them in the West. All season, the Grizzlies were 33-9 against teams at or below .500 and 11-20 against winning clubs.
Jenkins, with a career record of 250-214, was the winningest coach in franchise history for a team that launched in 1995. He had the longest tenure for a Grizzlies' coach since Lionel Hollins took over in the 2008-09 season before his contract was not renewed after reaching the Western Finals in 2013 with a 56-26 record.
But Jenkins has been criticized for continuing to use too many players at a point in the schedule when the rotation needed to be tightened and questioned for his late-game timeouts and other decisions. Asked about reports of two-time All-Star Ja Morant’s frustration over the Memphis offense, Kleiman repeated this was his decision.
Morant, who has missed the last six games with a left hamstring strain, now is listed as questionable for Saturday night's game with the Lakers.
Now Iisalo takes over after coming to the NBA as a Grizzlies assistant for this season, becoming the first Finnish-born coach in the NBA. Iisalo played and coached in Europe, including in 2024 when he was head coach of Paris Basketball, winning the EuroCup and honors as that league’s coach of the year. He also coached Telekom Baskets Bonn between 2021-23 and Crailshem Merlins between 2016 and 2021.
“Looking forward to seeing what he's able to do with this group,” Kleiman said of Iisalo. “There's realistic expectations. There's not going to be time to install a bunch of things this time of year. My expectations are clarity of direction and we'll see what we can do, we'll see what we can execute.”
AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba
Memphis Grizzlies head coach Taylor Jenkins looks on during the first half of an NBA basketball game against the Utah Jazz, Tuesday, March 25, 2025, in Salt Lake City. (AP Photo/Rob Gray)
FILE - Telekom Bonn coach Tuomas IIsalo directs his team during the final of the Champions League Final Four Basketball tournament between Telecom Baskets Bonn and Hapoel Bank Yahav Jerusalem in Malaga, Spain, Sunday, May 14, 2023. (AP Photo/Gregorio Marrero, File)
FILE - Telekom Bonn coach Tuomas IIsalo directs his team during the final of the Champions League Final Four Basketball tournament between Telecom Baskets Bonn and Hapoel Bank Yahav Jerusalem in Malaga, Spain, Sunday, May 14, 2023. (AP Photo/Gregorio Marrero, File)
