Gary Woodland set for PGA Tour return after brain surgery

Gary Woodland is set to make his return to professional golf, four months after undergoing brain surgery.

Woodland, 39, was diagnosed with a lesion in his brain back in May.

He had tried to treat his condition with medicine, but scheduled in surgery on September 18 after consultation with specialists and family members.

• Gary Woodland recovers from lengthy brain surgery

And he will now make his competitive return at the Sony Open this week in Hawaii, the second stop on the PGA Tour’s 2024 calendar and his first start since the Wyndham Championship in August.

Opening up on his harrowing time in his pre-tournament press conference, Woodland said: “The doctors kept telling me I was OK, but this thing which was pushing on the part of my brain which controls fear and anxiety… it didn’t matter if I was driving a car or on an airplane – I’d be thinking the bin is going to fall on me – I just thought everything was going to kill me.

“You can imagine – leading up to surgery – what I felt like about the thought of having my head cut open and my brain operated on. The fear going into that was awful.

“When I woke up and realised I was OK, I was filled with thankfulness and love, and that replaced the fear. It was emotional, very emotional, because I’d gone four-and-a-half months of every day really thinking I was going to die.”

This journey has been very hard but I’m extremely thankful to be progressing and for the unconditional love and support from everyone. You’ve all made this process a little easier for me and my family. Thank you to everyone and I look forward seeing you all next year. pic.twitter.com/ON16PuDUck

— Gary Woodland (@GaryWoodland) November 13, 2023

Woodland’s first symptoms included partial seizures in the night, whilst he also suffered with chills and lack of appetite as his condition worsened.

“The lesion sat on the part of my brain that controls fear and anxiety,” he said.

“They’re tracking it right now, every three months, with MRI scans still. I had an MRI right before I came to Hawaii, a week-and-a-half ago, and everything was stable from surgery – so that’s a huge relief for me.

“Showing up in Hawaii and practicing over the last 10 days, I had a little bit of relief off my back because it’s stable right now and we’ll just pray and hope that it continues to not grow.”

Woodland is a four-time winner on the PGA Tour, but his most memorable victory undoubtedly came in the 2019 US Open at Pebble Beach, where he claimed his sole major championship to date.

The Sony Open begins on Thursday at Waialae Country Club in Honolulu, Hawaii, with Ludvig Aberg, Tyrrell Hatton and Matt Fitzpatrick among the favourites for the title.

Ben Parsons joined bunkered as a Content Producer in 2023 and is the man to come to for all of the latest news, across both the professional and amateur games. Formerly of The Mirror and Press Association, he is a member at Halifax Golf Club and is a long-suffering fan of both Manchester United and the Wales rugby team.