Tiger Woods Holds Back Tears After Struggling at 2022 British Open, Return to St. Andrews in Doubt

Stuart Wallace/Shutterstock

Tiger Woods acknowledged Friday that he may have played his last British Open at Scotland's Old Course at St. Andrews after he missed the cut in the second round.

The 46-year-old golfer shot 75 over 18 holes on Friday after he shot 78 in his first round Thursday, combining for a 153 score through two rounds — nine shots over par, according to the tournament's website.

The golf legend finished his appearance at the Open just eight spots from the bottom of the leaderboard. However, since only the top 70 performers through 36 holes move on to compete over the weekend, according to the Golf Channel, Woods left the tournament early Friday and said he does not know if he will make it back to St. Andrews.

"I'm not retiring from the game," Woods told reporters via ESPN. "But I don't know if I will be physically able to play back here again when it comes back around. I'll be able to play future British Opens, yes, but eight years' time, I doubt if I'll be competitive at this level."

According to ESPN, the British Open rotates courses each year and is not scheduled to return to St. Andrews — considered the world's oldest golf course — until at least 2027.

Woods, who said before the tournament that he wanted "to be able to give it at least one more run at a high level" at St. Andrews, told reporters Friday that he has "nothing planned" for future tournament appearances, according to ESPN.

RELATED: Phil Mickelson Says He 'Respects' Tiger Woods' Criticism of Players Who Left PGA Tour for LIV Golf

Peter Morrison/AP/Shutterstock

"Maybe something next year. I don't know," Woods said. "But nothing in the near future. This is it. I was just hoping to play this one event this year. And I was lucky enough, again, [to get] three events in and they're all majors. So I feel very fortunate to have had things happen this way [after] the struggles I've been through to get to this point."

After Woods had an emotional moment walking the 18th hole at St. Andrews as the crowd gave Woods a standing ovation, he took to Twitter to express his gratitude.

"Although I am disappointed to be heading home, I had an incredible week at St Andrews celebrating 150 years of history and the game we love," Woods wrote in a tweet. "I want to thank this place for all the memories it has given me, and to the fans today for having the walk up 18 be added to that list."

RELATED: Who Is Tiger Woods' Girlfriend? All About Erica Herman

Woods, whose 15 major championships stand second only to Jack Nicklaus' record of 18, sustained significant leg injuries in a February 2021 car accident that left his pro golf career in doubt.

After he purposefully skipped June's U.S. Open in Boston to rest for the British Open, Woods still noted that "it's hard just to walk and play 18 holes" when asked about playing more events in the future, according to ESPN.

After he purposefully skipped June's U.S. Open in Boston to rest for the British Open, Woods still noted that "it's hard just to walk and play 18 holes" when asked about playing more events in the future, according to ESPN.

RELATED VIDEO: Tiger Woods' Kids, Girlfriend and Mom Join Him for World Golf Hall of Fame Induction

"People have no idea what I have to go through and the hours of the work on the body, pre- and post-[round], each and every single day, to do what I just did," Woods said.

He added: "That's what people don't understand — they don't see. And then you think about playing more events on top of that, it's hard enough just to do what I did."