Tiger Woods to put new golf ball in play in The Match as he looks to add distance to his game off the tee

ByAlex Livie

Updated 09/12/2022 at 16:57 GMT

Tiger Woods is back in action for the first time since missing the cut in the Open Championship at St Andrews in July. He will team up with Rory McIlroy to take on Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas in the seventh edition of The Match, and he will have a new ball in play as he seeks to add length to his game. Stream The Match featuring Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy live and on-demand on discovery+.

Tiger Woods will have a new ball in play in The Match, as he seeks to add distance to his game.

Woods will pair up with Rory McIlroy to take on Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas at Pelican Golf club on Saturday evening, with the action live on Eurosport and discovery+.

It will be Woods’ first appearance since missing the cut at the Open Championship, as he continues to battle with the leg injury he suffered in a car crash in 2021.

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Woods can still get the ball down the fairway, but at 46 and with a body that has gone through multiple surgeries, he is not as long off the tee as he was at the peak of his powers.

With that in mind, Woods will put a new ball in play for The Match and next week’s PNC Championship - where Woods will play alongside his son Charlie.

"The Tour B XS is a great golf ball, it has the feel and spin I’ve preferred. Right now, though, I'm experimenting with the Tour B X to get a little more pop," Woods said. "Based on the situation, I have different preferences and it’s great that Bridgestone has multiple balls right off the shelf that I can play."

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It is likely that Woods will revert back to the current ball he uses when he tees it up in competitive action in 2023.

"These are more of an exhibition-type situation, and I think that’s factoring into his decision," Elliot Mellow, Bridgestone's golf ball marketing manager, told Golf.com. "So he’ll be a Tour B X player at least for the next few events. He’s been looking at distance and the greenside spin is where it needs to be.

"The Tour B XS is still a ball he helped co-design, and it’s a ball he’ll probably go back to in those situations where he needs more playability and workability in the golf ball.

“We don’t get the impression this is a permanent thing. It’s more situational. He’s chasing distance more than spin for all the obvious reasons."

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Woods made only three appearances in the 2022 season, all in the majors at the Masters, US PGA Championship and Open Championship, and it is likely that he will have an extremely limited schedule in 2023.

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Stream The Match featuring Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy live and on-demand on discovery+.

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