“The views? It’s not changing unless Tiger is in contention these days,” said South Korean pro Byeong Hun An. The falling TV ratings and views on the circuit are nothing new at this point. With YouTube gaining relevance among the newer generations, as An mentioned, a generational figure like Woods is hard to replicate. But as the top golfers of the circuit sideline themselves owing to gruelling injuries, the Tour is gearing up for a grim future, starting with the PNC Championship from December 17-21.

Tiger Woods shouldn’t come as a surprise with his 7th back surgery a little over a month ago. Joining this fate is the 2x major champion Justin Thomas. The Ryder Cup star recently announced a microdiscectomy he has undergone to address a “nagging hip pain.” As the symptoms worsened, an MRI revealed a disc injury. Posting a clip from the New York hospital, Thomas shared:

“I had a successful microdiscectomy performed yesterday at Hospital for Special Surgery in NY. Before you ask, I’m not putting any tournament on the calendar or a specific time for returning. While I will miss some events in the beginning of 2026, I want to be very smart and patient in letting my disc fully heal so it isn’t an issue again.”

Unfortunately, the veteran hasn’t set a return date yet, with the rehab expected to be a minimum of a couple of months. The first event the veteran would miss is the Skins Game.

Alongside Xander Schauffele, Tommy Fleetwood, and Keegan Bradley, Thomas was set to bring the innovative event back to life the day after Thanksgiving. However, the golfer has since pulled out of the event.

Thomas will also miss the Hero World Challenge and the PNC Championship later this year.

Adding to the disappointment, golfing legend Tiger Woods shares a similar story. In fact, much worse from a surgical perspective.

Woods is no stranger to microdiscectomies. However, his recent lumbar disc replacement surgery makes things tenfold worse, since it is a complete bone replacement instead of just relieving pressure from the joints.

Consequently, the 49-year-old isn’t making his much-anticipated comeback in the family event either. Woods’ last PGA Tour start was in 2023. However, he did make some limited appearances on the golf course, reflecting his immense strength and resilience.

Woods competed in his own league, TGL, at the SoFi Center at Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, earlier this year. Whether he will return for season 2 is debatable, however. Tiger Woods also competed in last year’s PNC Championship alongside his son, Charlie Woods.

This year, the picture looks different, though, and much worse for the golfing world. With Justin Thomas and Tiger Woods both sidelined owing to their surgery saga, neither looks to be returning to the course. While for fans this is surely unfortunate, for the PGA Tour, it only adds uncertainty to its fragile future.

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The PGA Tour’s crumbling viewership

Across the circuit’s board, TV ratings and viewership have experienced a steep decline. In fact, stats show that without the ‘Tiger Woods effect’, the Tour has constantly struggled to pull in viewers. Golf fans are instead choosing 40-minute, fast-paced, engaging, and light YouTube golf over 5+ hours of regular professional events. The event’s reputation doesn’t work its charm anymore.

This year, TV ratings suffered at the Masters due to the absence of Tiger Woods.

The major amassed 2.3 million views across all credits on the opening day. While that number in itself might sound impressive, compared with the previous year’s 3.2 million views on a Thursday, it’s a 28% drop. What’s surprising is that the TV ratings suffered even though Rory McIlroy was on the field.

And it isn’t just the esteemed Augusta event that has suffered Woods’ painful absence.

The PGA Championship saw declining audience numbers across all four days. Round 1 averaged less than a million views, 13% down from ’24, round 2 averaged 1.3 million viewers, 24% down, and the third round crossed 3.11 million viewers, 12% down from last year. Even with Scottie Scheffler in the field on the final day, views declined by 4% from the previous year.

The American Express tournament experienced one of the worst viewership plummets, at 56%.

The way fans experience golf is shifting rapidly. With Tour veterans who carried the league on their backs stepping down due to age and physical constraints, this grim reality is becoming clearer. Now, with Woods and Thomas looking out of the PNC Championship, is it primed to become the next failing event on the Tour?