PGA Tour players Kim Si-woo and Kim Joo-hyung have received invitations from Tiger Woods. Both will tee it up at the Hero World Challenge, the year-end event Woods hosts.
The tournament's organizing committee released a first batch of 17 players on the 19th. World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler is in the field, along with Kim Si-woo and Kim Joo-hyung.
Woods has staged the Hero World Challenge every December since 2000. The event is unofficial but awards world ranking points, and only 20 players from the top of the world ranking are invited each year. There is no cut in the small, elite field, so an invitation itself is seen as recognition of a strong season. This year's tournament runs for four days from Dec. 3 at Albany Golf Course in the Bahamas, with three spots still open.
Kim Si-woo will play the event for the first time. He finished inside the top 30 of the FedEx Cup standings this season and reached the Tour Championship, the final playoff event. He also played a central role for the International team at the Presidents Cup against the United States. A consistent year ultimately earned him Woods' invitation.
Kim Joo-hyung, who won on the PGA Tour this season for the first time in three years, will make his third appearance after playing in 2022 and 2024. He finished runner-up in 2024 and is chasing his first title at the event.
Scheffler and defending champion Hideki Matsuyama of Japan will each try to become the first three-time winner of the tournament.
The golf world's attention is on whether Woods himself will play. He has not entered an official tournament since the British Open, a major, in July 2024. In March this year, he overturned a Range Rover while trying to pass a truck near Jupiter Island, Florida. Two white opioid painkiller pills were found in his pocket, and he was charged with driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs. Early last month he reached a plea bargain with prosecutors for a reduced charge, closing the case. Legally, he is now clear to return to competition.
Based on past patterns, this tournament could mark his comeback. After layoffs for surgery and other reasons, Woods has returned at either the PNC Championship, a PGA Tour Champions event, or the Hero World Challenge. Footage recently emerged of him practicing his swing at a junior tournament venue sponsored by his foundation, raising expectations for a return.
