Tiger Woods hasn’t played in the U.S. Open since 2020 and his entrance via winning majors expired for the 2024 edition of the tournament. As long as he's able to play he'll likely get the invitation and with his verbal commitment to be in the field at Pinehurst the United States Golf Association announced Thursday that Woods has received a special exemption to play the 2024 U.S. Open.
Woods has a lifetime exemption to play in the Masters and the PGA Championship, but the U.S. Open reserves its exemptions for major winners over the last five years. This is the first year Woods cannot get in on account of his 2019 Masters win, his last triumph in a major tournament.
Woods has missed the last three U.S. Opens because of various injuries. He did not make the cut in 2020 and does not have a top-ten finish since 2010. A three-time U.S. Open champion, Woods missed the cut three of the last four times he's played in the U.S. Open.
The tournament will be held June 13-16 in North Carolina. The defending champion is first-time major winner Wyndham Clark.
Tiger Woods' 2024 taking shape
Woods spoke about his desire to play throughout the 2024 season a few weeks ago and his acceptance into the field at the U.S. Open is a sign that he intends on making those plans a reality.
A last-place finish at the Masters is not deterring Woods' spirits, even with all the aches and pains he has to deal with just to finish a round. He said he had a good week at Augusta and was able to find some positive takeaways from his four rounds. He did make history by making the cut for a 24th consecutive Masters tournament.
Woods is slated to participate in the PGA Tour's second major of the year in May when the PGA Championship takes place. He did not play in two of the last three tournaments and withdrew in 2022. He hasn’t played in all four majors in a single year since 2019.
Woods has had a rocky start to his 2024 season and it is apparent that he struggles physically at times. He's played in only two tournaments to this point as he withdrew after a first-round 72 at the Genesis Invitational in February. The Masters is the only PGA Tour event he's completed this year.
You have to go back to 2020 to find the last time Tiger Woods played somewhat consistently. He hasn’t played in more than three PGA Tour events in a calendar year since then but sounds like he's going to push to at the very least swing it at all four majors in 2024.
Plans could change for Tiger Woods after The Open Championship in July but for now, it appears we're going to see plenty of the golf legend over the next few months. Major season is also Tiger season. That doesn’t change, even when he's nowhere near the peak of his powers.
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