Tiger Woods Hospitalized After Car Flips in Severe Accident in Los Angeles, Sheriff Says ‘No Evidence of Impairment’

Jordan Moreau
·3 min read
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UPDATED: Tiger Woods was hospitalized and underwent surgery after being involved in a roll-over car accident in Los Angeles on Tuesday morning.

Woods was the only person in the car, which flipped over and sustained “major damage,” according to the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department. Firefighters and paramedics had to use a rescue tool to extract him from the vehicle, and he was taken to Harbor-UCLA Medical Center to be treated for his injuries.

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During a press conference held by the L.A. County Sheriff’s Department on Tuesday afternoon, Sheriff Alex Villanueva said that there was no “evidence of impairment” when deputies arrived on the scene. L.A. County Fire Chief Daryl Osby also clarified that the “jaws of life” were not used to extract Woods from the car, but rather a halligan tool and an axe. Though Villanueva did not know the exact speed Woods was driving, he said that it was a “greater speed than normal.”

“Tiger Woods was in a single-car accident this morning in California where he suffered multiple leg injuries,” his manager, Mark Steinberg, told the Associated Press. “He is currently in surgery and we thank you for your privacy and support.”

No other cars or people were involved in the crash, which happened after 7 a.m. on the edge of Rolling Hills Estates and Rancho Palos Verdes, a wealthy community in the South Bay area of Los Angeles. Woods was driving northbound on Hawthorne Boulevard at Blackhorse Road when his vehicle flipped and crashed.

On Tuesday night, Woods’ team released an update on his condition, writing that he is “awake, responsive, and recovering in his hospital room.”

Anish Mahajan, M.D., the chief medical officer and interim CEO at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center, also went into detail regarding the surgery that was performed on Woods. “Comminuted open fractures affecting both the upper and lower portions of the tibia and fibula bones were stabilized by inserting a rod into the tibia,” Mahajan wrote. “Additional injuries to the bones of the foot and ankle were stabilized with a combination of screws and pins. Trauma to the muscle and soft-tissue of the leg required surgical release of the covering of the muscles to relieve pressure due to swelling.”

Woods was slated to shoot a Discovery program Wednesday as part of his partnership with GolfTV, alongside David Spade, Jada Pinket Smith, Dwyane Wade and others, a source familiar with the matter tells Variety. Woods was also filming Tuesday.

The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department released a statement with the details of the crash in the early afternoon.

“On February 23, 2021, at approximately 7:12 a.m., LASD responded to a single vehicle roll-over traffic collision on the border of Rolling Hills Estates and Rancho Palos Verdes. The vehicle was traveling northbound on Hawthorne Boulevard, at Blackhorse Road, when it crashed. The vehicle sustained major damage. The driver and sole occupant was identified as PGA golfer, Eldrick ‘Tiger’ Woods. Mr. Woods was extricated from the wreck with the ‘jaws of life’ by Los Angeles County firefighters and paramedics, then transported to a local hospital by ambulance for his injuries,” the Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department tweeted in a statement.

The crash is being investigated by the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department’s Lomita Station.

Woods was in Los Angeles to host the Genesis Invitational golf tournament held at the Riviera Country Club in the Pacific Palisades.

In 2009, Woods’ SUV ran over a fire hydrant and crashed into a tree, and in 2017, police found him asleep behind the wheel of a car improperly parked on the road. For the second incident, he pleaded guilty to reckless driving and attended a clinic to help with a sleep disorder and prescription medication.

Ellise Shafer contributed to this report.

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