Associated Press
PARK CITY, Utah ó Tiger Woods had arthroscopic surgery on his left knee Tuesday to repair cartilage damage, his second operation in five years on the same knee. He is expected to miss at least a month while he recovers.
The surgery, announced on his Web site, came two days after Woods finished three shots behind Trevor Immelman in the Masters. He most likely will miss The Players Championship, but should return in time to play the U.S. Open at Torrey Pines on June 12.
iI made the decision to deal with the pain and schedule the surgery for after the Masters,î Woods said. iThe 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.î
The surgery was performed in Park City, Utah, by Thomas Rosenberg, who also operated on Woodsí left knee in December 2002. Woods also had surgery in 1994 on his left knee to remove a benign tumor.
Swing coach Hank Haney told the AP in phone interview he knew Woodsí knee was bothering him, but was not aware of the surgery until Woods called him.
iHeís been having a lot of trouble,î Haney said. iHe doesnít talk about stuff like that. He doesnít want to use excuses, you know? I donít think it affected his play. It affected his practice a little bit. He hit 14 greens in regulation on Sunday. Hard to say it was the knee.î
Woods gave no indication his knee was bothering him the first three months of the season, when he won his first four tournaments to extend a winning streak that dated to September.
iTiger 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,î said Mark Steinberg, Woodsí agent at IMG. iTiger 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.î