PGA Tour notebook: Tiger Woods says his rehabilitation is on track

From WorldGolf.com News Services

Tiger Woods says his rehabilitation after knee surgery is going well and that he hopes to return to action at the Memorial later this month in his first competition since the Masters.

Woods finished second behind Trevor Immelman by three strokes at Augusta National Golf Club. Two days later, he underwent arthroscopic surgery on his left knee and was expected to be out of action for 4-6 weeks.

With the U.S. Open at Torrey Pines a little more than a month away, Woods said he's progressing slowly. Speaking Monday in a video conference to promote the BMW Championship, the world No. 1-ranked player told reporters that he's back to chipping and putting.

"I'm not doing anything beyond that," Woods said. "Hopefully, I'll start hitting balls and start progressing soon and working my way up the bag.

"The rehab is going well. I've been training hard. I'm getting sick and tired of riding the bike, though. That gets old fast."

Woods has now had surgery on his left knee three times. Before turning pro, he had surgery to remove a benign cyst in 1994 and then had arthroscopic surgery on the same knee in December of 2002.

However, Woods said he hopes that his knee isn't going to be a chronic problem that hampers him in the future. Then again, he's had the same thoughts before.

"I said after the first surgery, I said I probably wouldn't have another one," Woods said. "Then, after the second one, I wouldn't have another one, and now here I am having three. It is what it is. It's the nature of playing sports."

Goydos: The best second ever

Paul Goydos couldn't hold on to the 54-hole lead in last Sunday's final round of The Players Championship, but that doesn't mean it wasn't a profitable weekend for the journeyman player.

Despite losing on the first playoff hole to Sergio Garcia at the Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass, Goydos walked away with more than $1 million in prize money. In doing so, he took home the largest runner-up check in PGA Tour history.

Although he was obviously disappointed not to get the victory, Goydos credited Garcia for winning the tournament.

"I'm very pleased," Goydos told reporters after his round Sunday. "Again, I played well. I may have some mistakes, but the day I don't make mistakes is the day I'm dead."

Technology on Tour

CBS Sports will televise "Technology and Golf," a special that explores how advancements in computer and video technology have impacted the game. The PGA Tour-produced program is scheduled to air at 2 p.m. EDT Saturday on CBS.

The special will show how technology plays an ever-increasing role in the way golf is learned, played, viewed and understood. From state-of-the-art swing analyzers and the gathering and dissemination of statistical data, to the high-definition telecasts, technology is taking on an increasing role in the sport.

The program explores the ShotLink Data Management System used at every PGA Tour event. Aided by hundreds of volunteers and hand-held laser devices, the Tour's real-time scoring system can generate more than 500 statistics with a single shot recorded. The data collected is available instantly to on-site fans, TV networks and viewers.

Worth noting

- Sergio Garcia recorded a runner-up finish at The Players Championship in 2007 before winning the event at TPC Sawgrass last week. The only other player in tournament history to finish second one season and win the next was Tiger Woods, who was the runner-up in 2000 before winning in 2001.

- By tying for 10 thplace last week at The Players, J.B. Holmes regained a spot in the top 10 in the FedEx Cup standings, climbing to ninth after moving up three spots. Paul Goydos, who moved up 104 spots to No. 42, and Sergio Garcia, who moved up 101 places to No. 14, were last week's biggest climbers.

- When Ben Curtis three-putted at the 12th hole last Friday during the second round of The Players Championship, it ended his streak of 374 holes without a three-putt. The streak was the longest without a three-put by any PGA Tour players this year.

May 15, 2008