Tiger Woods ready for the 'unknown' at fan-free US PGA Championship

American great is bidding for his 16th major title but will be without his usual enormous galleries of support

Tiger Woods on the practice area during a practice round for the PGA Championship at TPC Harding Park. Reuters

Tiger Woods plays a shot during a practice round prior to the 2020 PGA Championship at TPC Harding Park. AFP

Tiger Woods plays a shot from the bunker during a practice round prior to the 2020 PGA Championship at TPC Harding Park. AFP

Tiger Woods during a practice round prior to the 2020 PGA Championship at TPC Harding Park. AFP

Tiger Woods catches a ball during a practice round prior to the 2020 PGA Championship at TPC Harding Park. AFP

Tiger Woods during a practice round prior to the 2020 PGA Championship at TPC Harding Park. AFP

Tiger Woods' bag during a practice round prior to the 2020 PGA Championship at TPC Harding Park. AFP

Tiger Woods talks with Pat Perez during a practice round prior to the 2020 PGA Championship at TPC Harding Park. AFP

Tiger Woods is the most famous golfer in history and routinely attracts enormous crowds following his every shot.

However, the former world No 1 faces a journey into the unknown at this week's US PGA Championship, which will be played against the surreal backdrop of a deserted course at TPC Harding Park.

Throughout his career, Woods has become accustomed to roaring galleries, providing a jolt of energy that the 15-time major champion has fed off time and again.

Yet this week's PGA Championship in San Francisco will be different. Restrictions imposed due to Covid-19 mean that the first major of 2020 will be a fan-free, muted affair.

Woods got an early taste of his changed environment on Tuesday during a media briefing. Where in the past a scrum of reporters would have attended, on Tuesday only a handful of journalists were present.

"Well, that's an unknown," Woods said when asked about how the absence of fans might affect his chances. "I don't know if anyone in our generation has ever played without fans in a major championship. It's going to be very different.

"But it's still a major championship. It's still the best players in the world. We all understand that going into it, so there's going to be plenty of energy from the competitive side.

"But as far as the energy outside the ropes, that is an unknown. And hopefully I can put myself in a position where I can be in that position where I can feel what it feels like to have no fans and also coming down the stretch with a chance to win."

Woods experienced the new fan-less reality at the Memorial Tournament last month, at Muirfield Village, in Dublin, Ohio. He finished tied for 40th.

"Those four days at Muirfield were a bit different," Woods said. "It reminded me of sometimes on the weekend, you'd tee off Saturday morning and you'd just barely make the cut and you're first off and there's no one out there.

"But generally by the time you make the back nine, there's thousands of people out there on the golf course waiting for the leaders to tee off.

"But that never happened. So that's the new world we live in. We just have to get used to it."

Woods said he has one eye on this week's weather forecast in San Francisco, with the 44-year-old American's lower back notoriously vulnerable to the cooler temperatures expected.

"When it's cooler like this, it's just making sure that my core stays warm, layering up properly," said Woods. "I know I won't have the same range of motion as I would back home in Florida where it's 95 every day. That's just the way it is."

Woods, who underwent spinal fusion surgery to rescue his career, said he had spent most of his downtime during the pandemic practising at home.

"I feel good," he said. "Obviously I haven't played much competitively, but I've been playing a lot at home.

"Just trying to get my way back into this part of the season. This is what I've been gearing up for. We've got a lot of big events starting from here, so looking forward to it. This is going to be a fun test for all of us."