Tiger Woods says he is exempt in The Open until the age of 60 after comments from Colin Montgomerie suggested he should think about retiring

Tiger Woods makes his 23rd Open appearance this week at Royal Troon, where he’ll be hoping to make his first Major cut since The Masters in April.

Woods faced the media at Troon on Tuesday morning, where he was asked about comments made by Colin Montgomerie who hinted that he should think about retirement. He gave an emphatic response.

“I hope people remember Tiger as Tiger was, the passion and the charismatic aura around him,” Montgomerie told The Times. “There is none of that now. At Pinehurst, he did not seem to enjoy a single shot and you think, ‘What the hell is he doing?’ He’s coming to Troon and he won’t enjoy it there, either.

“Aren’t we there? [retirement] I’d have thought we were past there. There is a time for all sportsmen to say goodbye, but it’s very difficult to tell Tiger it’s time to go.

“Obviously, he still feels he can win. We are more realistic.”

Woods made it clear he has no intentions of hanging up his clubs just yet for at least another decade in The Open where he is exempt as a past champion.

“As a past champion, I’m exempt until I’m 60. Colin’s not. He’s not a past champion, so he’s not exempt. So he doesn’t get the opportunity to make that decision. I do,” the 15-time Major winner said with a smile on his face in response to Montgomerie’s comments.

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