Tiger: Koepka's return 'incredible' for PGA TOUR, fans

Tiger Woods is ecstatic to have Brooks Koepka back on the PGA TOUR.

"I think it's incredible for the TOUR, incredible for all the fans," Woods told ESPN's Scott Van Pelt on Tuesday night. "The fan initiative program that we did last year, what they wanted, they want to see the best play against the best. And for Brooks to want to come back, a year early, and he was able to do that."

Koepka was reinstated by the PGA TOUR on Monday after joining LIV Golf in 2022.

As part of his reinstatement, the five-time major champion is required to make a $5-million charitable donation and forfeit his stake in the TOUR's Player Equity Program for five years (an estimated $50 million to $85 million in potential earnings).

Koepka was one of four LIV Golfers eligible to return under the PGA TOUR's new Returning Member Program, which is limited to players who won a major championship or The Players between 2022 and 2025. The other three - Bryson DeChambeau, Jon Rahm, and Cam Smith - all said Tuesday they're planning to stay with LIV for at least another year.

Woods, who chairs the PGA TOUR's Future Competition Committee and is a member of the PGA TOUR policy board, said Koepka's opportunities won't be limited as long as he's playing well.

"He's going to play full-field events, and he has the ability to earn his way up to signature events," Woods said. "If he's good, he's good. If he plays great, he plays great. If he wins tournaments, he wins tournaments. There's no reason why we should hold him back."

However, Woods' return to the PGA TOUR is far less clear after he underwent lumbar disc replacement surgery in October. The 50-year-old said Tuesday he's been cleared to hit short irons and mid irons, but nothing more.

"Whenever that time comes when I start hitting drivers and I start playing at home and start doing all the different things, I will have been away from the game for a year and a half," Woods said. "So I will be very rusty. And so there's a lot that goes into it, so my prep is going to have to be a little bit different from my other procedures I've had in the past. I've had to stay a lot more patient with myself. I get sore faster, I guess because I'm 50. And that happens."

Woods last played in a PGA TOUR event at the 2024 Open Championship.