Tiger Woods unintentionally daggers LIV Golf with latest Scottie Scheffler comments

Tiger Woods has heaped enormous praise on Scottie Scheffler during this week’s Hero World Challenge — and in doing so, accidentally fired another dagger to the heart of LIV Golf. 

Speaking to reporters at Albany in The Bahamas, where Woods hosts his 20-man invitational in aid of the TGR Foundation, the 15-time major champion has marvelled at Scheffler’s dominance throughout 2025. 

The runaway World No.1 racked up six PGA Tour titles this season, including two majors at the US PGA and The Open. That haul brings Scheffler, 29, to four majors in total, leaving him just one US Open victory shy of joining Woods himself in the elite club of career grand slam winners. Only Gene Sarazen, Ben Hogan, Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus, Woods and Rory McIlroy — who completed his slam at The Masters in April — have achieved the feat in the modern era. Scheffler’s opportunity arrives next summer, with the final round falling poetically on his 30th birthday.

Scheffler's four other wins this season came at the CJ Cup Byron Nelson, Memorial Tournament, BMW Championship and Procore Championship. 

He is now a 19-tme PGA Tour winner, just 63 wins away from matching his hero Woods.

Tiger praises Scottie and daggers LIV Golf in the process

Naturally, the question put to Woods was simple: What does he make of Scottie's game? 

Woods, 49, didn’t hold back.

"Well, there's nothing you can't not like about Scottie. 

"He's one of the nicest guys you'll ever meet. What he's doing on the golf course is just incredible, the consistency day in and day out, the strategy that he -- how he attacks the golf course. 

"It starts from you can see him analyze it from the green back where the flag is, where he wants to miss a tee shot, what club to hit, where the wind is, what side of the tee box he's to start off on. 

"It's truly amazing at how thoughtful he is and strategic he is throughout the entire round. 

"And on top of that, he doesn't have lapses in a round like most players do. 

"He's there present for all 18 holes and all shots played and that's hard to do. 

"To do that day in and day out with the grueling schedule that the Tour has and the players are playing now in more of a condensed season, and the big events that he's playing in."

But it was Woods’ next line that set social media alight — and many fans saw it as a not-so-subtle jab in LIV Golf’s direction. 

Pressed on whether Scheffler’s schedule had added difficulty due to elevated events and strong fields, Woods replied:

"I mean, he won six times and they're not small events. He's beating the best fields. 

"So that's something that I certainly can appreciate and I think that I hope everyone else appreciates it as well because you just don't see this happen very often."

Cue the reaction.

Golf fans instantly noticed that Woods’ choice of words — “beating the best fields” — clearly emphasised the PGA Tour’s strength at a time when LIV Golf continues its push to be seen as equal in competitiveness. 

It's not the first time he's daggered LIV Golf. 

In 2023, Woods claimed he "couldn't figure out what the hell was going on" during LIV Golf broadcasts.

Whether his latest jab was intentional or not, many interpreted it as Woods reaffirming his long-held stance on where the world’s deepest fields are found.

Woods, who turns 50 in a few weeks time, now sits on the PGA Tour's Future Competitions Committee, and he discussed sweeping changes that are coming to the circuit in the next 12 months. The former World No.1 admits the PGA Tour board has "torn down and looked at so many different models" for the schedule and are still in that process. A radical new PGA Tour schedule is expected to be unveiled ahead of the 2027 season. 

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But back to Scheffler, and Woods wasn't done praising him during his press conference. Woods loves one area in particular about his fellow TaylorMade staffer's game. 

"I truly love watching him hit irons, the shaped shots that he hits, the trajectory, the window changes that he has, the distance control, the miss in the proper spot, the proper spin in certain pin locations. 

"These are all subtle things that mean a lot over the course of 72 holes. 

"That to me is impressive. If you don't have trajectory control, you can't have distance control. 

"To see him move it up and down in different windows, use wind, fight wind and control spin is fun to watch."

Case and point in this video below as Woods watches on in admiration: 

As Scheffler chases an unprecedented third straight Hero World Challenge title this weekend — and as Woods prepares for his own long-awaited competitive return — the world of golf will continue dissecting every word the 82-time PGA Tour winner says.

Whether you agree with Woods is down to you as we head into 2026. What do you make of his latest comments? Are the strongest fields still on the PGA Tour, or has LIV Golf shifted the balance in its favour? Share your thoughts and comments below - it's free to sign up for a GolfMagic account...