Number one will be below par for 18 months

Bad news for golf fans, good news for any players hoping to pick up some winners’ cheques on the tour. Tiger Woods has revealed that his recent knee surgery will prevent him from getting back to his best until 2010. The world number one has been out of action since June and has acknowledged that he won’t even be able to hit a ball in frustration until January 2009 as he recovers from his anterior cruciate ligament operation.

“Over the next 18 months (the knee) will gain 100% strength, so it’s a two-year process. The healing process for an ACL is six months,” said the 32-year-old, throwing in a medical acronym for good measure. “No matter what I try to do, I can’t speed up that process. That puts me into January. Unfortunately, I can’t rotate, I can’t practice on that leg until then. I believe the stat is after six months, the ACL is 85% in strength.”

The good news is that Tiger’s surgeon does not believe the surgery will have any permanent impact on his career.