Tiger Woods: Get ready for pain game, Rory

Tiger Woods has warned Rory McIlroy to be prepared for a tough week as he returns to action following an ankle injury to defend his PGA Championship title at Whistling Straits.

World number one McIlroy injured ankle ligaments playing football on July 4 and has not played competitively since.

The Irishman, who won this tournament for the second time in three years at Valhalla 12 months ago, had been expected to stay sidelined for longer, but after a week playing out of the limelight in Portugal, followed by three days of practice here by the shores of Lake Michigan, the 26-year-old has decided to tee off in tomorrow’s opening round.

There will be strings attached, though, believes former number one Woods, the four-time PGA winner, who yesterday said: “Am I surprised he’s made the recovery? No, not really. He has good physios, he’s worked hard. It’s a matter of how long is he going to have to go with it like this or is he going to have to get it surgically repaired.

“And then, obviously, this is going to be tough. This is going to be a tough golf course, if you miss the golf ball a little bit, and even the walks, from tee box to fairway, they’re not straight. They’ve got a little angulation, and it’s just a matter of how can he hold that up.

“As far as his talent and to be able to play golf, that’s not going to be a problem. He understands how to play. It’s a matter of physically can he do it.

“I’ve had injuries where I’ve, I blew out my knee and played for a good nine months before I had it fixed. So it can be done. Is he probably going to be in pain? Probably, yeah. Swelling is going to probably occur, but that’s why the physios are there, and I’m sure they’ll get him organised.”

Another not to be taken aback by McIlroy’s decision was compatriot Darren Clarke, though it was the lack of competitive play over the past five weeks that was the European Ryder Cup captain’s chief concern for the Irishman’s prospects of a successful title defence.

“No, I’m not surprised to see him back here,” Clarke said yesterday. “He obviously has got a wonderful team around him, and he would have done everything he could to get back as quickly as possible.

“I’m sure with an ankle injury he would have been advised not to come back until fully fit. If you injure an ankle and keep playing on it, it gets worse and worse and worse. He’s back, he may not be competitively sharp, for obvious reasons, but he’s world number one. He’s done many amazing things in his young career, so I wouldn’t be surprised to see him contending this week.”