AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am
Gary Woodland makes emotional first return to Pebble Beach since his U.S. Open win

Gary Woodland hits a shot out of a fairway bunker on the ninth hole during the second round of the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.
Icon Sportswire
PEBBLE BEACH — When Gary Woodland stepped onto the first tee at Pebble Beach Golf Links for a practice round Monday afternoon, he paused for just a moment and allowed his emotions to settle into his heart before striking his tee shot. He hadn’t been back to the storied layout since he won the 2019 U.S. Open. Seventeen months ago, he wasn’t sure he would ever have a chance to return.
“There was a lot of reliving a lot of stuff, which was cool. I probably needed it,” said Woodland, who is making only his fifth career non-major start at Pebble. "It’s been a hard couple of years for me. To come back and get a lot of good vibes on the golf course, it was emotional for sure.”
On Friday, in the second round of the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, Woodland played his first competitive round at Pebble since his three-stroke victory that prevented Brooks Koepka from winning his third straight U.S. Open title. He endured an up-and-down day that turned chilly, but despite a closing bogey on the iconic par-five 18th hole after hitting a tee shot out of bounds, Woodland was satisfied with an even-par 72.
That round was emotional, too, with fans yelling “Go champ!” and other exhortations of encouragement. “Good energy,” he said with a grin and a hint of more emotion.
Now that he has that out of the way, Woodland, tied for 47th in the 80-man field at four-under 140, can concentrate on getting back to the heights he enjoyed six years ago. He believes he can get there. It would be one helluva comeback.
In September 2023, Woodland underwent surgery to remove a lesion from his brain. He managed to return to competition less than four months later at the Sony Open in Hawaii, but while it was a relief to be back on a golf course, it also was difficult and disappointing, and he says now that he came back much too soon.
“Yeah,” I shouldn’t have been out there playing with how I was feeling,” said Woodland, 40, who missed 11 cuts in 26 starts and posted just one top-10 finish to end up 155th in the FedEx Cup standings. “No matter what I thought I could do, I couldn't do it. … But I'm glad I did it, because I learned so much on what hurts me and what helps me. If I wouldn't have done that last year, I wouldn't have known. I'm in a position now where I can do stuff before I come out here in the day that I know I'm going to feel good.

Gary Woodland celebrates winning the 2019 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach.
RK
“Last year was potluck every day,” the Kansas native added. “I didn't know I was going to feel, I'm in a place now where my health isn't going to hinder me as much, which is nice.”
In his 17th year as a professional, Woodland for the first time is serving on the PGA Tour Player Advisory Council. He wants to contribute to the changes he said are surely coming to the tour, to have a voice in the decision-making process. He takes on this responsibility in what is a key year for him—his last playing on an exemption from his U.S. Open victory.
“I'm in a position where I don't have to focus on myself as much, and I can actually be part of really, and I want to understand what's going,” he said. “I want to be there to voice my opinion. I have, I've done a little bit stuff behind closed doors, but I'm interested and anxious and excited to be part of the change that's going to happen and, hopefully, I can voice some good opinions.”
Ponder the opener to that quote. He doesn’t have to focus on himself as much. This in one of the most important years of his career, but he chooses to exert some energy on what might help his peers. But Woodland is like that. He is known as one of the most well-liked among his peers and among the most approachable players in the game.
But perhaps not thinking as much about his golf game says everything about the state of it. He is playing this week on a sponsor’s exemption—a worthy choice if ever there was one—after beginning the season with an encouraging T-16 finish at the Sony Open. He is feeling more like his old self. In many ways. Ranked 187th in the world, Woodland said his goal for this year is to find that guy and unleash him. He believes he can qualify for the playoffs and reach the Tour Championship, something he hasn't done since 2019.
Even his uneven performance on Friday was something to build on. “I’d like to have three swings back,” he said. “I didn’t play well today and shot even par. Last year that would’ve been four or five over par.
“I feel I can go out and I can compete again,” he added. “I don't have to be perfect. I'm just trying to be boss, just trying to be so my not perfect stuff's good enough out here, and it hadn't been that way in a long time. I'm just in a position now where I can start back being myself.”