Tiger Woods on the 2023 Ryder Cup Team? U.S. Captain Zach Johnson Isn’t Ruling It Out

Could Tiger Woods be a part of the U.S. Ryder Cup team in Rome this fall?

Team captain Zach Johnson isn’t ruling it out, no matter how unlikely it sounds at the moment.

Speaking at a press conference prior to the Sony Open in Hawaii on Wednesday, Johnson was asked about the possibility of Woods playing in the event.

🚨 | Zach Johnson isn’t ruling out Tiger Woods playing in the 2023 Ryder Cup. pic.twitter.com/dWLjFVbTcZ

— GolfMagic (@GolfMagic) January 12, 2023

Johnson explained:

“I would only contemplate having him on the team if he felt — if he was putting up some numbers and some scores, No. 1, showing some sign of being competitive,”

“And then No. 2, that discussion would be had with the other guys that are a part of that team, and specifically him. If there is anything I trust in Tiger Woods, is that he’s extremely invested in this team and the future Cups. Extremely invested. I can’t speak that enough.”

Johnson said that even if Woods didn’t play, he would be a part of the team in some regard.

Woods has, of course, dealt with major health issues stemming from a February 2021 car crash in which his leg was almost amputated. Most recently, he withdrew from the Hero World Challenge last month due to a case of plantar fasciitis.

Johnson added that he won’t have to agonize over making a decision because he’s confident that Woods would not want to play and potentially hurt the team if he felt he wasn’t capable of competing.

Johnson said:

“I assume he would say — I don’t like basing on assumptions, but I confident that he would say, yeah, I can play, or no, I can’t, if that makes sense.”

Surprisingly, Woods’ Ryder Cup record isn’t all that spectacular. Overall, he’s 13-21-3 in eight appearances in the event. In singles matches, he’s 4-2-2 but in foursomes and four-balls, his record is just 9-19-1.

Cover Image Via SI