Tiger Woods' return speculation has grown tremendously, as the 15-time major winner has a spot waiting for him at the PNC Championship in case he and his son want to compete.

The 82-time PGA Tour champion hasn’t played a competitive round since the 2024 Open Championship. He was teasing a Masters return this year as he teed off in the TGL finale for Jupiter Links, but he flipped his Land Rover just days later and was arrested for DUI.

After the car accident, Woods eventually pleaded no contest to a reduced charge of reckless driving, and then he left the country to pursue a rehabilitation stint. He made his first public appearance since the accident at the Travelers Championship.

Although the 50-year-old had his seventh back operation in October 2025, he was recently seen hosting a golf clinic for his foundation in California. He also appeared healthier than earlier in the year, when he was pictured alongside a recent photo of his girlfriend, Vanessa Trump.

The PGA Tour regular season has come to a close, which means the Hero World Challenge is set to round out the calendar. There are three mystery spots in the field, as Woods is the host of the tournament and four-time PGA Tour champion Kevin Kisner revealed there's a chance he could play while speaking on the Fore Play podcast.

Then the PNC Championship, which is a family-friendly event, hits the calendar.

Organizers of the PNC Championship are keeping an open spot available for 15-time major champion Woods and his son, Charlie Woods, if he decides he is healthy enough to play, according to an unauthorized source familiar with the tournament's plans who spoke to Golfweek.

With only three of the 20 teams announced for the December event so far, the door remains open for their return, despite missing last year's event due to Woods' back injuries.

Amid return speculation, Woods’ TGL expanded to five players this year. Kisner, who was a part of the squad in past years, saw his two-year contract with Jupiter Links GC expire. It ended his stint with the squad, but he revealed that Woods hopes for a fuller schedule and a possible competitive return.

“Tiger wants to play, and they wanted to sign Keith Mitchell, which is totally fine with me,” Kisner said on the podcast.

“Rob (McNamara], Tiger’s guy, he texted me a long text last week. Just telling me what they did on their decisions, how they were moving around, and what players were going to do, and that Tiger wanted to play a full schedule.”

Kisner said Woods could be looking at playing the Hero World Challenge and the PNC Championship.

“He’s going to play both,” Kisner said on the Fore Play podcast. “He can’t have any more setbacks injury-wise. The way he was swinging and moving on the range, I mean, the guy loves to compete.

“Come back, get your feet wet at the Hero, play with Charlie in the Father/Son, play some TGL, get ready for Augusta.”