Tiger Woods again hops in CBS booth, but shows stark difference from last year

LOS ANGELES – High atop the hill, fans started ringing the putting green at Riviera. They lingered near the clubhouse entrance. They sipped cocktails on the top-floor balcony.

Nearby, Tony Finau and Taylor Moore were working on their strokes, but no one was there to see them. About 50 yards away, in the CBS Sports booth, was Tiger Woods, fulfilling his weekend obligation as tournament host of the Genesis Invitational. And so for 45 minutes, they waited for a glimpse.

Two members of Team Tiger patiently waited outside the booth behind Riviera’s famed 18th green. Volunteers made small talk, awaiting the call. Finau finished his cooldown, slid on his credential and stood by his bag, seemingly to catch Woods’ eye on the way out.

It was this very booth appearance last year that foreshadowed the trouble ahead. No, no one could have predicted the horrors of the next 48 hours, when Woods drove his SUV off a cliff and sustained such extensive injuries to his right leg that doctors considered amputation. But it was clear during those weekend TV spots that he didn’t look well. Recovering from a fifth back procedure, his eyes were heavy, his shoulders slumped, his speech slurred.

Full-field scores from The Genesis Invitational

The difference on Saturday afternoon was stark.

On camera and in person, he looked healthy, his biceps stretching the limits of his crispy white sweater. He spoke clearly on a variety of topics (life after golf; the distance debate; his upcoming Hall of Fame speech) and laughed easily at his new physical limitations, joking that he hadn’t been running any marathons recently.

During his Wednesday press conference and again in his Saturday sitdown, Woods seemed downright ebullient, and perhaps that’s understandable: He’s showing physical improvement. He’s working toward his goals. And he’s full of gratitude and appreciation – that he’s still here, of course, but also that he still has a chance to play for however long his battered body allows.

On that point, CBS’ Jim Nantz tried every possible angle to get Woods to commit to a comeback date. Indeed, 22 seconds into the sitdown, he asked: “Is it close?”

The Masters?

The Par-3 Contest?

Any of the majors?

Or, how about anything in 2022?

At one point Woods laughed, “You guys are really hammering me on this,” but he was typically tight-lipped.

“You’ll see me on the PGA Tour [in 2022],” he said, “I just don’t know when. And trust me, I’d love to tell you that I’m playing next week, but I don’t know when.”

This waiting game is nothing new to Woods, and it’s worth recalling he didn’t play in last year’s Genesis as he recovered from yet another surgery on his ailing back. In the booth that day he was asked how he was feeling. “I’m feeling fine. I’m feeling fine,” he said, and it was hard – impossible – to believe him.

Not so this time.

No, this time, after 45 minutes in the booth, Woods happily emerged through the side door and was greeted by raucous cheers. A cup in his left hand, a grin on his face, he trailed his security detail and charged toward the clubhouse door as they hollered, “Let’s go!!!” It was the loudest roar of the week.

Woods ducked inside the locker room, to whatever hosting duty he had next, and the crowd began to disperse, their wait worthwhile. A few awestruck folks started chatting up the security guard near the bottom of the ramp.

“Holy s–t, you got a fist bump from Tiger?” they asked.

He grinned. “Oh, yes, sir, I did. Yes. I. Did.”