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Woods' chances of playing in Melbourne rise after Masters win
The Presidents Cup would be taken to "a whole new stratosphere" if Tiger Woods plays this December's event at Royal Melbourne, according to Golf Australia.
Having broken his more than decade-long major tournament drought by winning the Masters at Augusta, Woods also rocketed from 17th to ninth in the US Presidents Cup standings.
Woods is already guaranteed to be at Royal Melbourne as his team's captain, but the prospect of the 43-year-old playing the event would be another thing all together.
Tiger Woods dons the famous green jacket after his long-awaited victory at the US Masters on Monday. Credit:AP
Woods' win leaves him just outside the eight automatic qualification positions for the US team. Those eight spots will be settled later this year after the Tour Championship event.
Even if he didn't qualify automatically, Woods could select himself as one of four "captain's picks".
The thought of him playing again on Melbourne's sandbelt is a tantalising prospect, according to Golf Australia media manager Mark Hayes.
"We saw when Tiger Woods came out just before Christmas what it means to have him in town," Hayes said.
"There was a real buzz around him, and that was just promoting the Presidents Cup. He's taking the captaincy reins for the first time, and he's very excited about that. He knew that the prospect of being a playing captain, which has only happened once before, was on the table, but he wasn't committed to it.
"I think the buzz around him as captain would be enormous. If he were to be a playing captain it would just be next level. It would take the Presidents Cup to a whole new stratosphere."
Woods has played in Melbourne several times before, including the 2011 Presidents Cup.
"If it was another captain, and he was objectively using his captain's picks, you'd be mad not to use Tiger Woods to be part of his team," Hayes added.
"He genuinely loves playing the Melbourne sandbelt courses, that's not just a throwaway line. If he were able to play at Royal Melbourne again, where he's had so many great memories, including the last Presidents Cup in 2011, I'm sure he'd grab the chance and be absolutely thrilled to do it."
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April 15, 2019 Golf Comments Off on Woods' chances of playing in Melbourne rise after Masters win