Tiger Woods became eligible for the PGA Tour Champions when he turned 50 on December 30, 2025 - and rumors about if, and when, he will play on the senior circuit have been circulating in the golf world ever since.
Tommy Gainey, also a member of the '50 club', gained his first PGA Tour Champions victory at the Constellation Furyk & Friends last year, says he's confident that Woods will make his debut in May.
Talking to Colt & Drew on Gravy & The Sleeze on Sirius XM PGA Tour, the player known as "Two Gloves" who was named PGA Tour Champions Rookie of the Year, said, "I do think he's going to play out here [the PGA Tour Champions]."
Gainey, a huge Woods fan, has done his homework, and points to the deal he signed with Insperity as a good signal that the 15-time Major winner will tee it up at the Insperity Invitational in Texas.
It's the question that continues to captivate the golf world. Will Tiger Woods play on the @ChampionsTour? Tommy Gainey talks about it w/ Colt & Drew on Gravy & The Sleeze.@TwoGlovesGolf | @InsperityInvtnl | @ColtKnost | @thesleezyman 📻: https://t.co/NmEfdRTY9U pic.twitter.com/RxDgfAp7WMJanuary 21, 2026
Insperity, a human resources and business solutions company, is one of Woods' sponsors, and it's also the title sponsor of the tournament at Woodlands Country Club, which takes place May 8-10.
"He signed a deal with Insperity. You could see it on his sleeve, so that's good news," said Gainey.
"I will let people think maybe what they want to think on that, but that tells me that if he's able to play, he's going to play in that one."
Woods continues to recover from injury and was unable to take part in TGL in January, as his Jupiter Links Golf Club side went down 8-4 to Los Angeles Golf Club.
Speaking at the Hero World Challenge in December, an event Woods hosts, he said that his ongoing recovery from lumbar disc replacement surgery was not going "as fast as I'd like it to be".
"I just got cleared last week to chip and putt so it’s good. It’s been slow," he said.
"I can’t really do much [but] now we’ve got the OK to start cranking up a little bit in the gym, start strengthening and start doing a little bit more of the rotational component that I haven’t been able to do [and] just letting the disc set."
He also joked that he would be playing 25 events on both the PGA Tour and PGA Tour Champions this year.
"No, just let me get back to playing again, and then I’ll figure out what the schedule is going to be.
"I’m a ways away from that type of decision, that type of commitment level."
Gainey - who recently pulled out of the opening Korn Ferry Tour event in order to give a young up-and-comer a chance of breaking through - remains hopeful that Woods will turn his attention to the PGA Tour Champions once he's fit.
"I would love to be paired with him going into the final round with a chance to win a golf tournament against him," he said.
"That would be, like, a dream come true. Everybody knows he was the man on the PGA Tour."
Woods might not feeling too thrilled to have recently turned 50, but Gainey is delighted for what it could mean for the senior circuit.
He added: "I'm just so happy he's 50, because you know what, he's going to bring more eyes to the PGA Tour Champions and that's never going to hurt."
