Tiger Woods did not stop on the famous Swilcan Bridge in 2022 – but he might yet say goodbye in two years’ time.
The R&A has confirmed the Home of Golf will host the game’s oldest competition for a record-extending 31st time, restoring its normal five-year cycle.
Back in 2022, many believed it would be the last time Woods graced the iconic Scottish fairways.
Speaking before the event, having miraculously recovered from a near-fatal car crash months prior, he said: “It is my favourite [golf course].
“I don’t know how many Open Championships I have left here at St Andrews, but I wanted this one.
It started here for me in 1995, and if it ends here in 2022, it does.”
Then 46 and desperately struggling with injuries, the 15-time major-winner was given the perfect opportunity to say goodbye.
His predecessor, Jack Nicklaus, stopped on the 18th’s famous Swilcan Bridge and waved farewell to The Open in 2005, giving the game one of its most enduring images.
But Woods, walking down the 18th and guaranteed to miss the cut in 2022, chose not to stop.
The American tipped his cap to the thousands of adoring fans and broke down in tears as he arrived at the green.
In a truly poignant moment, his most famous disciple, Rory McIlroy, was walking up the adjacent first fairway, almost symbolically collecting the torch as it was passed.
