Tiger Woods tears up after 'unforgettable' British Open moment

Tiger Woods has boldy declared he is not ready to retire from golf after missing the cut at the British Open.

The three-time champion of the British Open was moved to tears as he was greeted by a stunning round of applause from the crowd, which his playing partner for the day decribed as 'incredible'.

'NOT GOOD': Tiger Woods' brutal swipe at Greg Norman at The Open

HUGE TWIST: US government takes action amid ugly golf war

Woods fought back tears as he recieved as standing ovation from fans, eventually completing a round of 75 which unfortunately saw him drop out of the famous tournament at St Andrews.

Speaking afterwards, Woods dropped a bombshell on the golfing world.

“I had a few tears. I’m not one who gets very teary-eyed very often about anything,” he said.

“To me it felt like this might have been my last British Open here at St Andrews. The fans, the ovation and the warmth, it was an unbelievable feeling.”

Despite saying this would likely be his final appearance at the the famous course, Woods has remained determined to continue playing majors to the extent his body allows it.

Emergency surgery after his horror car accident in 2021 has seriously compromised his ability to walk long distances, with the 46-year-old dealing with a great deal of pain.

Woods memorably made the cut at both the Masters and PGA Championship, but eventually withdrew from the latter after it simply became too arduous to back up on the course over multiple days.

“It’s hard just to walk and play 18 holes. People have no idea what I have to go through and the hours of work on the body, pre and post, each and every single day to do what I just did,” he said.

"I certainly feel like I'll be able to play more British Opens, but I don't know if I'll be around when it comes back around here."

British Open ovation moves Tiger Woods to tears

Woods skipped the US Open so he could physically recover in time to play the 150th Open at the course he said is his favourite in the world.

But he was able to make his only birdie of the day at the par-four third hole by draining a 28-foot putt.

Woods had a chance to go out with a fist pump with a short birdie try at the 18th green, but he watched as yet another putt lipped out and shook his head as he tapped in the par before waving to the crowd.

Rory McIlroy was heading up the first hole, parallel to the 18th, as Woods walked up the last fairway, and the Northern Ireland star was seen giving his friend a tip of his cap.

"The warmth and the ovation at 18, it got to me," Woods said.

"Just the walk. I felt the guys there stop there off the tee at 18. It was just incredible, the amount of understanding and respect that are involved in this event."

Woods' playing partner for the day, US Open champion Matt Fitzpatrick, said he was stunned by the feeling of approaching the 18th hole alongside the golfing legend.

He said the farewell Woods recieved at The Old Course would remain with him forever.

“It was incredible. It’s something that will live with me forever, for sure,” Fitzpatrick said.

“It’s thoroughly deserved and I think towards the end of it, you could see he was a little bit emotional as well. It was a big deal.”

The earliest the Open could return to St Andrews is 2026, although 2027 would be more likely given the previous tradition of staging it on the Old Course every five years.

"I certainly feel like I'll be able to play more British Opens, but I don't know if I'll be around when it comes back around here," Woods said.

With AAP

Click here to sign up to our newsletter for all the latest and breaking stories from Australia and around the world.