If only Tiger Woods had Jack Nicklaus' unwavering confidence. In Tiger, that is.
The man who holds the PGA Tour record with 18 victories in major tournaments, said it is premature to write off the ailing player, who is in second place all-time with 14 major wins, CNN reported.
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"He has always been a very focused young man with a great work ethic, and is tremendously talented. To count him out of that (the majors record) would be foolish, he certainly has a very good chance of doing that," the 75-year-old Nicklaus said.
The Golden Bear added that he is doing whatever he can to help Woods recover from his lingering back issues that have put his career on an indefinite hiatus.
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"I said to Tiger no one wants to see their records broken, but I would want you to be healthy," Nicklaus said. "I've tried to help him with some of the people who helped me in my career.
"I fully expect Tiger to return to come back to play well and be a good competitive force in the game, but it does make me sad to see Tiger or any of our athletes struggle with health. I think Tiger has struggled a lot with his health of late, and nobody likes that."
Woods will turn 40 later this month, and Nicklaus won three of his majors after turning 40. But Woods said after undergoing three back surgeries in two years to relieve pressure from a pinched nerve in his back has left him without a timetable for a return because he doesn't know how long it will take for him to recover, if he ever does.
Woods has dropped to No. 400 in the latest golf rankings.
Before Woods' Hero World Challenge tournament, current No. 1 Jordan Spieth said he thought Woods' playing days weren't over, though Spieth stopped short of making any predictions about majors.
"He still has a lot of good years ahead of him in my mind, but now he's really sitting back and saying 'You know if it takes that long. ...'" Spieth said, according to CNN. "He's got it figured out -- obviously it's frustrating for him, but we haven't seen the end of him."
His comments were a little more reserved, and perhaps more believable, than Nicklaus' comment that Woods still has a legitimate chance to break his majors record.
"No, no he doesn't," CBS Sports quipped.
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