Gary Woodland has revealed he will have enhanced security at the Masters after crippling mental health struggles left him in fear that fans were trying to kill him.
Woodland secured a return to Augusta National with a shock victory at last month’s Texas Children’s Houston Open. It was his first PGA Tour win since he underwent brain surgery in September 2023 to remove a lesion.
Earlier this year, Woodland – the 2019 US Open champion – disclosed that he has been battling post-traumatic stress disorder for around a year.
The benign lesion on his brain was causing seizures, anxiety and unfounded fears that he was dying. He had surgery to remove baseball-sized hole cut from the side of his head. But after the symptoms persisted post-surgery, Woodland was told he had PTSD.
On Tuesday, Woodland said he was ‘happy’ and ‘excited’ to be playing the Masters once more. But the American admitted he has had to negotiate a security detail to help him cope with the crowds.
During the second round in Houston, Woodland became so ‘hypervigilant’ that he ‘battled the last 10 holes thinking people were trying to kill me.’
Gary Woodland sealed a fairytale return to the Masters with victory at the Houston Open
The 41-year-old recently admitted that PTSD left him ‘thinking people were trying to kill me’
‘If I can see [security], then I can remind myself that I’m safe constantly,’ the 41-year-old said. ‘I don’t have control when this thing hits me, and it’s tough.
‘It can be a fan. It can be a walking score [official]. It can be a camera guy running by me, just any startlement from behind me can trigger this pretty quickly… when I’m not on the course, I’m in a battle, and when I’m on the course, I’m in a battle.’
He added: ‘It’s a big week for me this week. The fans are very close on the tee boxes. There’s a lot going on. There’s probably not a safer golf tournament in the world, so I’m happy for that, but it’s still a battle in my head if I’m safe or not. That’s a tough pill to swallow.’
The father of three was overcome with emotion after securing victory in Houston. He stretched out both arms, exhaled and looked to the sky before tears began pouring out.
‘The doctors – and everybody I’m working with – were trying to slow my heart rate down, trying to slow my thoughts down just to function and be healthy,’ he explained at Augusta.
‘But doing those things obviously helps my golf game as well. I wish I knew a lot of this stuff 20 years ago. It’s given me purpose, golf has, for sure.
‘When I was diagnosed with this brain tumor three years ago, my No 1 thought was: I wasn’t going to let this thing win. I’ve dreamed of being a professional athlete since I was a little kid, and I would do everything in my power to live that dream for my childhood self.
‘Golf has given me something a lot more to fight for than just myself and my family… there’s been times where I didn’t know if I was going to be able to do it, but I was going to fight and give it everything I had.’
The victory marked Woodland’s first PGA Tour win since he underwent brain surgery
The American shared an emotional moment with his wife Gabby on the 18th green
Woodland believes that at times this year his game – physically, at least – has been in better shape that at any point in his career. Even when he won the 2019 US Open.
‘But there’s been times where I didn’t know if I’d have the mental stamina to get through a week,’ he said.
‘I fought hard earlier this year with some struggles, and that’s hard, that’s a hard pill to swallow that this thing could be taken away from me for something that’s out of my control.’
Woodland said he has been shocked by the reaction to his decision to go public with his diagnosis.
‘It just shows that everybody is going through something. Everybody’s battling something. Whether it’s way bigger or way less, it doesn’t matter what you’re battling. To you it’s important,’ he said.
‘Winning the U.S. Open in ’19 had the biggest impact in my life from a golf standpoint. There’s no doubt. I hope winning in Houston had a bigger impact on somebody else’s life.
‘I hope somebody that’s struggling with something sees this guy out here fighting every day and still living his dreams, and then they want to get up there and fight and live their dream too. I really from the bottom of my heart hope that happens.’
He urged everyone else to ‘talk to somebody’ rather than battle their demons alone. ‘You don’t have to fight this on your own,’ he said.
Woodland urged everyone else to ‘talk to somebody’ rather than battle their demons alone
‘We live in a world, as men and especially as an athlete, that you put your head down and you fight through it. I’ve done it my whole life. This is honestly one battle that I’m not able to do on my own. I tried, and it wasn’t working. And talking has helped me so much.’
Woodland’s best finish at the Masters came in 2023, before his surgery, when he was tied for 14th. He missed the cut in 2024 and did not make the field last year. For a long time, the 41-year-old admitted, winning a tournament or returning to Augusta was ‘probably the last thing’ on his mind.
‘I didn’t know that releasing this battle was going to make me stronger, and it’s done that,’ Woodland added.
