Tiger Woods health update: How is the 15x Major winner doing? Reported recovery from illness explored

It was a disappointing return to action for Tiger Woods, though it was really through no fault of his own. The legendary golfer contracted an illness during the latest tournament and was forced to withdraw prematurely. It's the second in the past year that he's had to WD.

It was revealed later that the mystery illness that had ailed Woods in his 2024 debut was a bout of influenza, one that he is recovering from. He is reportedly doing pretty well after he had to be taken away in an ambulance due to the lack of IVs on the course.

This ordeal prompted some scares, but the latest report suggests that he is feeling "much, much better" per the Express. Rob McNamara, Executive Vice President of TGR Ventures, said that the golfer had started to feel some flu-like symptoms on Thursday night and eventually had to withdraw after six holes.

"He had a little bit of a fever and was better during the warm-up, but then when he got out there and was walking and playing, he started feeling dizzy."

Doctors believe there was some flu but also that Woods was dehydrated. Once he got some fluids in thanks to the IV, he began to recover rather quickly. Unfortunately, it was too late for his Genesis Invitational appearance.

Woods had committed to appearing monthly on the PGA Tour, with the Genesis Invitational and the PLAYERS Championship being mentioned by name. That also includes the majors. It does mean, though, that Woods likely won't participate again in a sanctioned event until March.

The Arnold Palmer Invitational on March 7th seems like the most likely, but Woods hasn't committed to anything. The Masters follows in April, so he'll be seen fleetingly over the next two months, making his early exit that much more frustrating.

Woods had been off to a decent enough start, knocking in a birdie on first hole. He came back down to earth on the next couple, but was playing fine for his first action on tour since last April before having to exit.

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Tiger Woods still working his way back

Fans may have gotten caught up in the fact that Tiger Woods was back. After a roughly nine-month hiatus in which the golfer had and recovered from major ankle surgery, the 15-time major winner was back for the Hero World Challenge.

Tiger Woods had an illness over the weekend

He was then seen again for the PNC Championship, and finally in a PGA Tour field for the Genesis. However, it is important to remember that the comeback is a process. He wasn't going to just jump in and go right back to normal.

The illness that Tiger Woods contracted didn't help, since it robbed him of his appearance in February and got his comeback off track. Nevertheless, since it was a short bout and a speedy recovery, things are once again trending positively.

As many say in these situations, it was another minor setback for a major comeback. Woods, 48, has no plans on retiring immediately, so there's time for him to keep working back fully.