Tiger Woods is about to play once again this month. The Masters are almost here, and Woods is in the field and has begun getting ready to compete. He’s been largely absent since last year’s tournament, but he’s back and evidently he’s in good form.

Will Zalatoris, who was practicing with the 15-time major winner, admitted that Woods surprised him with how good he looked. Woods is 48 and has had a variety of health issues, but that doesn’t appear to be slowing him down so far.

Via TWLEGION on X, formerly Twitter, Zalatoris heaped praise on the legendary golfer:

“He outdrove me a couple of times so there was some chirping going on… With everything he’s gone through, it’s pretty amazing to see how good he’s swinging it.”

Woods has always been a good driver, but to be able to still rely on that aspect of his game at his age and with the undeniable rust that comes from having played professionally only three times, one of which was an early withdrawal, in a calendar year is impressive.

Tiger Woods preparing to play 2024 Masters

Tiger Woods had to withdraw from the Masters in 2023. After making the cut and extending his streak of doing so at Augusta National, he had to leave due to injury. The conditions were also less than ideal.

Shortly thereafter, he had ankle surgery. He had to rehabilitate for six months, and then he resurfaced at the Hero World Challenge and PNC Championship. He then expressed a desire to play monthly this year.

He wanted to play some PGA Tour events, such as the Players Championship, the Genesis Invitational, and the major tournaments. The first of which being here now, he seems poised and ready after his hiatus to play against the world’s best.

And according to Will Zalatoris, Woods will not be a pushover in this contest. He shocked the world by winning it all against the odds in 2019, and he will surely be aiming to do so once again this time.