Russell Knox has his own agenda this week, looking to secure one of the five leading spots up-for-grabs at Thursday’s starting 2023 PGA Tour Final Qualifier being staged on two courses close to his Ponte Vedra home in Florida.

Around 150 miles north in suburban Orlando, Tiger Woods will team with son Charlie in the annual PNC Championship on the host Ritz Carlton course.

It will be Woods second PGA Tour sanctioned appearance since last fortnight’s Hero World Challenge, and where Woods confidently and without fanfare, ended a near eight-month competition absence since withdrawing through injury ahead of the third round of April’s Masters.

Woods will team with his now 14-year-old son for a fourth straight occasion, and with the 15-time major champion, as will be the rule for all competitors, afforded the opportunity to use a motorised cart.

Tiger Woods and son Charlie teeing-up for a fourth straight occasion at the PNC Championship in Orlando

The event on the relatively flat Orlando host course will be Woods’ last of just four events or more-to-the-point, just 13 rounds in 2023 before returning full-time next year to the PGA Tour.  However, full-time will not mean a 20 plus tournament schedule but, as Woods hinted in the Bahamas, more likely one ‘big’ tournament a month return to the Tour.

No matter what events the soon-to-be 48-year-old will contest in the New Year, one thing was glaringly clear following his return in the Bahamas and that is you would be foolish to say that ‘TW’ cannot win again.

It’s a view shared by Knox when the Scot joined sports fans across the globe glued to ‘the box’ watching Woods sweat it out around a fortnight ago in the Bahamas.

“I’m the perfect age for watching Tiger his whole career”, declared Knox.

“It’s amazing how good he is, with all the stuff he’s been through. You can see him winning again. His skills are there, his body felt decent. His belief, his mental toughness is remarkable. I wouldn’t bet against him.

“He proves that he’s not human. He’s dedicated his whole life to being this superstar golfer and the amount of work that takes is incredible.

“Hats off to Tiger!”

Tiger Woods breaks all sorts of records in winning the 1997 Masters and helping inspire an then 11-year old Russell Knox.

It was a poster of the Woods winning the 1997 Masters by 12 shots, setting a 72-hole Augusta record, becoming the youngest winner at Augusta as well as being the first non-white to win the Masters, that inspired a then 11-year-old Knox growing-up in Scotland.

“Tiger winning in ’97 was my sole inspiration”, said Knox.

“The poster of Tiger had all the records he broken that year written on the poster, and every time I would go to bed there’s this poster of Tiger staring at me.

“I had probably watched TV coverage of the Masters before ’97 but that win, and for anyone who is around my age in that generation, it just prompted me to want to play golf.

“And seeing Tiger win in the manner he did in ’97 just made me want to also practice and work so much harder on my own game.

Not that Knox and Woods are good buddies but like all pros they respect each other, and with Knox recalling what it was like when he found himself drawn with Woods and Japan’s Hideki Matsuyama during the first two rounds of the 2018 147th Open Championship at Carnoustie.

Scotland’s Russell Knox competing along the then 14-time major winning Tiger Woods in the 147th Open at Carnoustie in Scotland

Knox teed-up that week having captured the Irish Open a fortnight earlier at Ballyliffin.

“I wanted to chat with him (Woods) a little bit,” said Knox.  “Hideki is not the easiest person to talk to with the language barrier so I was like yeah, I’m out here with Tiger for five hours, might as well talk to him (smiling).

“I really didn’t know what would happen. I mean, it’s Tiger Woods.

“I recall expecting that first round with Tiger to be a little different. He’s the best golfer of all time.  He’s definitely the person I looked up to.  So getting to play with him was pretty unique.

“He’s a person who I’ve seen on the range in the past and he’s almost like a mythical figure.

“It was a special two days not only competing alongside him in a major championship but being a Scot and competing in a major championship in Scotland was pretty unique”.