It doesn’t seem two minutes since Tiger Woods was almost unbeatable in the early 2000s but here we are, some 25 years later with Woods edging closer to 50 and a spot on the Champions Tour.
While so many have been and gone and the game does have big names like Rory McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler, nobody quite comes close to the aura that Woods brings.
A 15-time major winner and tied at the top of PGA Tour wins with 82, Woods has done it all in golf.
However, come 2026, his focus will be allowed to shift to the PGA Tour Champions if he fancies it and two men who know Woods well, Paul Azinger and Bernhard Langer, have been giving their verdicts on Woods coming to the TOUR.
Bernhard Langer and Paul Azinger make Tiger Woods prediction for 2026
Speaking to the media ahead of playing in the Chubb Classic in a few weeks, experienced duo Paul Azinger and Bernhard Langer were asked about Tiger Woods being eligible to play PGA Tour Champions next year.
And it’s safe to say that Woods’ impending arrival is big news.
“It’s pretty high level still. You have Steven Alker who won it all last year from New Zealand who never played the TOUR. You have several guys like that,” Azinger said.
“But I feel like there’s going to be great anticipation for Tiger Woods. Tiger Woods will be eligible for the tournament Bernhard finished second in last week, and the big question is whether or not Tiger is going to play, what’s that going to do to this tour. You’ve got all those giant names on this tour, and you bring Tiger in, I think the global media shows up immediately. I’m talking about the global media.
“Then all of a sudden the focus is on this tour. I believe there’s a lot of anticipation. A lot of guys are going to be in shape and ready and try to beat Tiger if they can. I think Tiger might even feel an obligation to play the Tour. The Tour has given Tiger a lot of money the last few years with that Player Impact Program. I’m sure he’s going to give back, and it’s going to be to all the benefit of these guys out here that are over 50.”
Carrying on the conversation from the comments from Azinger on Woods, Langer was then asked to give his thoughts on the 15-time major winner coming to the PGA Tour Champions.
“I’ll go ahead, Paul. Yeah, I had the pleasure of playing with Tiger about three weeks ago or four at the PNC Championship in Orlando at the Father-Son, and he was playing with his son and I was playing with my son, and we were head-to-head all Sunday long, and it was a thrill and fun,” Langer said.
“Tiger still loves the game. He’s still very competitive, and he enjoys watching his son get better and better at the game, and Charlie loves it, so I think he will stick with it. Anyway, for us it would be a thrill to see Tiger come out and play the Champions Tour, and I’m convinced he will play several. Depends how many.
“I’m going to gradually get older and older here, and I may not be at the very top of my game when he comes out, but he always moves the needle. He’s a very exciting personality to watch, and it would be fantastic for Tiger and for our tour to be competing out there, and I think all the players would welcome him, and it would be an interesting competition because the guys, as Paul says, they are very good. It’s the only major senior tour in the world, so you get the best players from all over the world to compete in this, and we only have 78 Tour cards basically, so it’s a very, very tough tour to get on, and only the best make it.”
Langer has previously spoke of Woods’ desire to continue playing.
What Tiger Woods has told Padraig Harrington about his future
Every golf fan in the world is eager to see Tiger Woods play golf for as long as he physically can and the PGA Tour Champions is an extension of his career.
Thankfully, it looks like we will get our wish.
Padraig Harrington revealed last year that Woods told him he is coming to play, in what is a big bonus for all on the PGA Tour Champions.
“So he has an intention of playing. I think his words were, ‘I can’t wait to beat you out on the Champions Tour or something like that’,” Harrington said.
“He doesn’t want me to have it all my own way, let’s put it like that! I’m looking forward to the challenge.”
It would be simply amazing if Woods doesn’t start to win past 50 and you never know, he might even start to reel Langer in.
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