Five-time Masters champion Tiger Woods missed the annual dinner celebrating past winners at Augusta National Tuesday (April 8) night as he continues to recover from an Achilles injury sustained last month.
“We were putting our jackets away and the guys said that Tiger still can’t put weight on his foot,” said 1971 Masters champion Charles Coody via Golfweek. “They said his weight tolerance just isn’t there to climb up those stairs.”
Vijay Singh, the 2000 Masters champion who already withdrew from this year's tournament due to injury, was also absent from Tuesday's dinner, along with 1988 Masters champion Sandy Lyle, who cited "personal reasons" via Golfweek.
Woods, who is involved in a partnership with Augusta National amid his absence from competing in this year's tournament, revealed that he underwent a "minimally-invasive Achilles tendon repair for a ruptured tendon" after experiencing "a sharp pain" in his left Achilles in a post shared on his social media accounts last month.
"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. This morning, Dr. Charlton Stucken of Hospital for Special Surgery in West Palm Beach, Florida performed a minimally-invasive Achilles tendon repair for a ruptured tendon. "The surgery went smoothly, and we expect a full recovery," added Dr. Stucken. I am back home now and plan to focus on my recovery and rehab, thank you for all the support," Woods said in a statement shared on his social media accounts.
Woods, 49, has dealt with several injuries in recent years, which included a near-death car accident that took place in February 2021. The legendary golfer underwent multiple surgeries on the injuries suffered in the single-vehicle accident, which included open fractures to both his tibia and fibula bones.
Woods, widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential golfers of all-time ranks second all-time with 15 majors behind only Jack Nicklaus (18) and has 82 PGA Tour victories, tied with Sam Snead for the most all-time. The annual Masters Champions Dinner' takes place at Augusta National two days before the opening round of the major tournament with the defending champion playing host to other past winners.
Scottie Scheffler, who won the event during two of the last three years, chose a menu that included "Papa Scheff's Meatball and Ravioli Bites," which he said was a specialty made by his father, Scott, during his childhood, as well as humorous nod to the No. 1 overall golfer puncturing his palm when he used a wine glass to cut ravioli he was making for Christmas dinner. Scheffler's menu also included cheeseburger sliders and firecracker shrimp as appetizers, which he had previously served after his first Masters victory, a Texas-style chili as part of the first course, the choice of ribeye or redfish for the main course and warm chocolate chip skillet cookie with vanilla bean ice cream for dessert.