There is no timetable for Woods's return, although Dr. Charlton Stucken of the Hospital for Special Surgery in West Palm Beach, Fla., who performed the Achilles repair operation, said in a statement that he is expecting "a full recovery."

An "Achilles rupture" specifically describes a complete tear of the Achilles tendon, meaning the tendon is fully severed. Last year, Bernhard Langer tore his Achilles and returned to competition three months later, but a tear is not as severe an injury as a rupture, which is what Woods suffered.