Tiger Woods tells The Scotsman: I'd love to play in 150th Open at St Andrews

Tiger Woods, a two-time winner at St Andrews, has admitted he would “love to play” in next year’s 150th Open Championship at the home golf.

Tiger Woods with the Claret Jug after winning the 134th Open Championship at St Andrews. Picture: Adrian Dennis/AFP via Getty Images.

The 15-time major winner’s eyes lit up when asked about that event by The Scotsman as he addressed the media today ahead of this week’s Hero World Challenge in the Bahamas.

Woods is not putting a timeline on his return to action following the car crash in February that left him with severe leg injuries, stressing that he had a “long way to go”.

But, in his first public appearance since the accident in Los Angeles, the 45-year-old spoke enthusiastically about the milestone edition of the game’s oldest major in Fife.

“I would love to play at St. Andrews, there's no doubt about it,” said Woods, who got his hands on the Claret Jug on the Old Course in both 2000 and 2005. "It’s my favourite golf course in the world.

“To be a two-time Open champion there and even just being a part of the Champions Dinner is really neat.

“I got to attend my first one in '05 and it was pretty neat to be a part of. Peter Thomson was still alive, and I sat right next to him and to hear him tell stories of when he came over and he played and shots he played and how he did it, that was awesome.

“Those dinners are priceless and those stories, listening to them talk about how they played, when they played it and what they did, it's just an honor to be a part of a room like that.

“Yes, I would love to be able to play that Open Championship, there's no doubt about it, and hopefully I can."

Woods won his first Claret Jug in St Andrews by eight shots in 2000 before finishing five shots in front of second-placed Colin Montgomerie five years later.

Martin Slumbers, chief executive of The R&A, welcomed the comments from Woods in the countdown to next year’s keenly-anticipated event.

He said: “We are delighted to see Tiger looking well and continuing his recovery. He is one of golf’s and The Open’s greatest champions and it would be fantastic to see him return to St Andrews next year for The 150th.”

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