Tiger Woods committed to play three tournaments in the next month ahead of the Masters, where the 14-time major champion will resume his pursuit of the all-time record 18 major titles won by Jack Nicklaus.
World No.2 Woods announced on Tuesday via his website that he will play in next week’s World Golf Championships Match Play Championship, the US PGA Honda Classic and next month’s WGC Cadillac Championship at Doral.
Together with the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill in late March, those are the key tune-ups usually on Woods’ schedule as he prepares for the first major event of each year, the Masters in early April at Augusta National.
Woods began his US PGA campaign with a victory last month at Torrey Pines, his 75th career triumph and record eighth on the course where he won his most recent major title at the 2008 US Open.
Next week’s 64-player match-play event will feature most of the world’s top 64 players in an $US8.75 million ($A8.6 million) showdown at Dove Mountain, Arizona, featuring world No.1 Rory McIlroy, Woods and English world No.3 Luke Donald.
Woods won the WGC Match-Play event in 2003, 2004 and 2008. He lost to Nick Watney in last year’s second round.
After a week off, Woods will play at the PGA National Champion Course near Miami in an event where McIlroy is the defending champion.
Woods shared second in 2012, two strokes off the pace despite a final-round charge with an eight-under 62, the lowest final round of his career.
“I’m excited to be playing in the Honda Classic again,” Woods said of the PGA event that runs February 28-March 3.
“I like the golf course and I came pretty close last year. It’s part of a busy stretch for me and I want to continue playing well.”
McIlroy’s victory in the event last year launched him into the world No.1 ranking for the first time, a spot he lost and reclaimed and has now held for 26 weeks in a row.