Golf hasn't been part of the traditional sports that belonged to the Olympic Games. In fact, it has been out of the Summer Olympics for 112 years, making a long-awaited return at Rio 2016. Unfortunately, superstar Tiger Woods couldn't participate that year.
It was somehow ironic, as Woods has certainly played a significant role in golf's return to the Olympics about five years ago due to his worldwide recognition. From now on, however, it seems like golf and the Olympic Games will make up for the lost time.
Tokyo 2020 will be the fourth Olympics to include golf, which was also an Olympic sport in Paris 1900 and Saint Louis 1904, before making its return in the 2016 Rio de Janeiro games. Tiger Woods, arguably the greatest golfer of all time, has already missed the last Olympics and he won't be at Tokyo 2020 either.
Why is Tiger Woods missing Tokyo 2020 Olympics?
The 45-year-old golf legend was ruled out for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics after suffering a scary rollover accident earlier this year. Tiger Woods was the only passenger in a single-car wreck that caused him multiple leg injuries.
In December 2020, he underwent a fifth back surgery that had already put his career on hold for a while. But his serious car crash on February 2021 has inflicted the worst and most painful injuries of his life, he said to Golf's Digest Daniel Rapaport a few months ago.
Woods was hospitalized right after the accident in California and underwent surgical procedure before returning to Florida to continue with rehab. A statement released through his social media on February 24, 2021 revealed he suffered "Comminuted open fractures affecting both the upper and lower portions of the tibia and fibula bones were stabilized with a combination of screws and pins. Trauma to the muscle and soft-tissue of the leg required surgical release of the covering of the muscles to relieve pressure due to swelling."
