Tiger Woods said he is back home and recovering Tuesday, three weeks after he was hospitalized following a crash in the Palos Verdes area.
The golf star suffered a serious leg injury on Feb. 23, when the SUV he was driving went off the road in the area of Hawthorne Boulevard and Blackhorse Road, rolling over a downhill stretch apparently known for accidents.
“Happy to report that I am back home and continuing my recovery,” Woods, who is from Florida, said in a tweet posted Tuesday evening. “I am so grateful for the outpouring of support and encouragement that I have received over the past few week.”
Woods, 45, was the lone occupant of the vehicle when it crashed around 7:12 a.m. on the border of Rancho Palos Verdes and Rolling Hills Estates, part of the Palos Verdes Peninsula, authorities said at the time.
The collision caused significant injuries to Woods’ right leg, and he underwent lengthy surgery at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center.
Woods had shattered bones in multiple places of his lower leg, and some of his fractures went through the skin and were stabilized by a rod, Dr. Anish Mahajan, chief medical officer, said at the time. Screws and pins were used for his ankle and foot injuries.
He was transferred to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center for follow-up procedures and recovery.
In his tweet Tuesday, he thanked the “incredible” medical staff at both hospitals.
“You have all taken such great care of me and I cannot thank you enough,” he said, adding that he will be recovering at home and “working on getting stronger every day.”
The golfer has previously undergone nine surgeries, including one for his back just two months before the crash. In 2008, he won the U.S. Open with shredded knee ligaments and two stress fractures in his left leg.
At the time of the crash, Woods was in Los Angeles to host the Genesis Invitational tournament at Riviera Country Club, where he presented the trophy. The day of the crash had been set aside for Woods to give golf tips to celebrities on Discovery-owned GOLFTV.
Following the incident, Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva said Woods was not impaired while driving, and it was “purely an accident.” In 2017, Woods checked himself into a clinic for help dealing with prescription drug medication after a DUI charge in Florida.
Woods told authorities he didn’t remember the Palos Verdes Peninsula crash.
Investigators executed a search warrant on March 1 to retrieve data from the “black box” of the Genesis SUV that Woods was driving, the Sheriff’s Department said. Information on findings has not yet been release.
