Will Tiger Woods bounce back from scandals, injuries, and other misfortunes?

Tiger Woods was seriously injured in a car accident with his car overturned. Thankfully, it was not fatal but he sustained serious leg injuries, which is believed to present the biggest challenge in his career as a pro golfer.

According to the Associated Press and ESPN, Woods crashed his SUV on a sweeping, downhill road in Los Angels County, California at 7:12 a.m. on Tuesday (local time). He was the only one in the car and there was no collision with other cars. The police and fire officials called to the scene broke the windshield with axes and chisels to rescue the golfer. Woods, despite the severe leg injuries, gave his name and answered other questions.

The accident took place near the border of Rolling Hills Estates and Rancho Palos Verdes about 32 kilometers south of downtown Los Angeles. The sweeping, downhill four-lane road has a speed limit of 45 miles per hour.

Woods was driving Hyundai Motor Company’s 2021 Genesis GV80. Hyundai Motor Company was one of the sponsors of the Genesis Invitational on the PGA Tour held in Riviera Country Club near Los Angeles last week. As a host of the tournament, Woods was given GV80 from the auto company. “Thankfully, the interior of his SUV was more or less intact, which kind of gave him the cushion to survive what otherwise would’ve been a fatal crash,” said L.A. County Sheriff Alex Villanueva. Woods was wearing a seatbelt at the time of the accident.

He was transferred to Harbor-UCLA Medical Center and immediately underwent an operation. “Mr. Woods suffered significant orthopedic injuries to his right lower extremity that were treated during emergency surgery,” Dr. Anish Mahajan, the Chief Medical Officer (CMO) at Harbor-UCLA, said after several hours of operation. “Comminuted open fractures affecting both the upper and lower portions of the tibia and fibula bones were stabilized by inserting a rod into the tibia.” However, he did not mention how severe the injuries are or how fast the golfer can recover.


Heon-Jae Lee uni@donga.com