Tiger Woods struggles with back stiffness ahead of THE NORTHERN TRUST

JERSEY CITY, N.J. – Tiger Woods approached the green with putter in hand. It’s a common sight for a player known as one of the best iron players of all-time.

It’s what preceded that scene, though, that was noteworthy. Woods didn’t hit a tee shot or an approach. That was the scene on the back nine of Woods’ Wednesday pro-am. A few chips and putts were the only shots he struck.

He said stiffness in his back kept him from making full swings for much of his round.

RELATED: Power Rankings | Preview: Tiger at THE NORTHERN TRUST | What you need to know for FedExCup Playoffs

“This is how it is. Some days I'm stiffer than others,” said Woods, who played a nine-hole practice round with Brooks Koepka, Dustin Johnson and Harold Varner III on Tuesday. “I was out there hitting it great. Driving it out there with Brooksy and DJ. Today I'm stiff. Hopefully I'm not that way tomorrow.”

Woods is scheduled to tee off at 7:43 a.m. Thursday with J.T. Poston and Scott Piercy. THE NORTHERN TRUST’s tee times were determined by the FedExCup standings, and this group represents players on the TOUR Championship bubble. Piercy, Poston and Woods are Nos. 26-28 in the standings, respectively.

For Woods, a TOUR Championship berth would allow him to return to the scene of last year’s memorable triumph, where the fans flooded the final fairway to follow Woods as he completed his first victory since 2013.

It also would mean three consecutive weeks of golf, something that is a concern for the 43-year-old golfer with a spinal fusion.

“I learned a lot last year by playing too much. Coming back from my procedure and not really knowing what to expect, I pushed it pretty hard,” Woods said. “I vowed I would never do that again. … Now we have a more condensed season and it’s trying to figure out how to stay sharp, practice and also have my back feeling good all the time. It’s a challenge.”

This is Woods’ first tournament since shooting 78-70 at The Open Championship. He’s played just four times since his Masters victory. He’s missed two cuts in majors during that span, and his best finish was T9 at the Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide.

Woods was runner-up in his previous two trips to Liberty National, in the 2009 and 2013 editions of THE NORTHERN TRUST, but he has an interesting history at this course that sits across the Hudson River from Manhattan. It was here that Woods suffered one of the biggest upsets of his career, first showed signs of the back pain that would cripple him for several years and admitted in a press conference that he faced an uncertain future in the game.

Heath Slocum holed a 20-foot par putt on the final hole to nip Woods by a shot in the 2009 NORTHERN TRUST here. Slocum started the tournament ranked 124th in the FedExCup and 197th in the world ranking.

Adam Scott beat Woods by a stroke four years later. Woods collapsed to his knees while hitting a fairway wood on the 13th hole of the final round. He said he was having back spasms caused by a soft mattress in his hotel room.

Woods also was at Liberty National two years ago as a captain’s assistant for Steve Stricker at the Presidents Cup. It was at a pre-tournament press conference that he admitted his back problems made it difficult to ride in a car and that he didn’t know “what the future holds for me.”

Woods is the U.S. Presidents Cup captain this year. He held a dinner for potential team members on Tuesday. He is 12th in the standings, but said his appearance as a player at Royal Melbourne is not a certainty.

“I told the guys last night that's what guaranteed are the top eight after next week. That's what's guaranteed,” Woods said. The top eight in the standings after next week’s BMW Championship earn spots on the team. Woods will make four captain’s picks after the World Golf Championships-HSBC Champions.

Woods is the reigning Masters champion, but also has shown signs of age in recent starts. Wednesday was another example of that. His ongoing back trouble has kept him from swinging the way he’d like in recent months. Instructor Matt Killen has been helping him with his putting and full swing in recent months.

“(He’s) trying to get me to basically swing very similar to how I was looking at Augusta, but easier said than done,” Woods said. “I’ve been trying to do that all summer, it just hasn’t worked out that way.”

He still has an opportunity to become the first three-time FedExCup champion, though. His body has to cooperate, though.

“He's Tiger Woods. He doesn't need to prove anything to anyone,” said Rory McIlroy. “He doesn't need to prove anything else to himself. He can put the clubs away tomorrow and live happily ever after, I guess. But he wants to compete. He's a competitor. I think it shows a lot that he still turns up to some events and wants to play.”