Bryson DeChambeau thinks the legendary Tiger Woods has plenty more to offer at Majors, despite a run of poor form at the big events and a suggestion that he should retire.
Prior to the final Major of the year, last week’s Open at Royal Troon, Colin Montgomerie said he should consider calling it a day, but Woods was having none of it, retorting: "As a past champion, I'm exempt until I'm 60. Colin's not. He's not a past champion, so he's not exempt. So he doesn't get the opportunity to make that decision. I do."
Woods then proceeded to miss the cut for the third successive time at a Major, leaving only a finish of 60th at The Masters to show for his efforts at the big events this year.
While that is partly down to Woods’ limited appearances, something that may be addressed in 2025 thanks to a new exemption category created for him that will allow him to play in all of the PGA Tour’s signature events, it did nothing to quell suggestions that his run of Major wins, which stands at 15, could have come to an end.
That’s not what DeChambeau thinks, though. The US Open champion competes at LIV Golf United Kingdom this week, and ahead of the tournament, he first backed Woods’ decision to commit to as many Major appearances as he can.
“He's probably the most influential figure in the game of golf,” began the 30-year-old. “He is the most influential figure in the game of golf right now, and I think he deserves to play in the Majors. He's done more than enough for this great game, and he continues to give back by playing in these tournaments and trying to win.”
DeChambeau then went further, insisting that Woods may yet turn back the clock with at least one more Major win.
He added: “He wants to win. He's a competitor. I think that's admirable, for him to be able to do that. I think he can do it still. He's going to have a tough road to beat us youngsters, but he's got that grit and fire in him that he's not going to stop until he gets it done. I wouldn't put it past him.”
Woods is certainly not giving up on the possibility of claiming another title if his comments made on the Today Show with Carson Daly earlier in the year are anything to go by. On it, he showcased his Sun Day Red apparel brand, where he explained its tiger logo has 15 stripes, one for each of his Major wins.
However, he admitted he didn’t want it to stay that way for good, saying: “My goal is to ruin this logo. I want to keep ruining the logo. If the trademark is this, my job is to ruin it.”
Following his early exit at Royal Troon, Woods suggested he still had plenty of ambition to improve his form once next year’s big events come around. He said: “I've gotten better, even though my results really haven't shown it, but physically I've gotten better, which is great. I just need to keep progressing like that and then eventually start playing more competitively and start getting into kind of the competitive flow again."
In DeChambeau, Woods has one player who thinks he still has plenty to offer.
