Tiger Woods underwent arthroscopic surgery on his left knee on Tuesday to repair damaged cartilage. It is the second operation Woods has gone through on his left knee in five years. The surgery was announced on Woods’ Web site, and comes just two days following his second-place finish at the Masters.

“I made the decision to deal with the pain and schedule the surgery for after the Masters,” Woods wrote on his site. “The upside is that I have been through this process before and know how to handle it. I look forward to working through the rehabilitation process and getting back to action as quickly as I can.”

The surgery was performed by Dr. Thomas Rosenberg in Park City, Utah. Rosenberg had previously operated on the same knee in Dec. 2002. It is the third surgery Woods has had on his left knee, having had a benign tumor removed in 1994.

“Tiger has been experiencing pain in his knee since the middle of last year, and when he had it looked at by his doctors, arthroscopic surgery was recommended,” said Woods’ agent Mark Steinberg told the AP. “Tiger has played through the pain in the past, but knew it would be better for him to have the procedure done as early as possible.”

Woods is expected to be back in time for the U.S. Open at Torrey Pines, though he will likely be able to compete in The Players Championship. At the PGA Tour Web site, Commissioner Tim Finchem commented on Woods’ knee surgery.

“Of course, we’re disappointed when Tiger is unable to compete in a PGA Tour event,” Finchem said. “There is really never a good time for an athlete – especially one of Tiger’s caliber – to take weeks off from competition during the season. But his health concerns have to come first.”

–WKW