Does the sport of golf miss Tiger Woods more than Tiger Woods misses the sport of golf?That’s a tough question to answer since they both seem to be missing each other quite a bit.After undergoing his fourth back surgery in three years in April, the 14-time major winner is out for an indefinite amount of time. With every passing tournament and particularly every passing major, Woods has left a clear void that hasn’t been filled by whoever the next superstar to dominate the sport will be.But, throughout his recent struggles both on the course and health-wise, Woods has remained respectful of the sport and has updated his fans along the way.On Wednesday, he posted some exciting news to his website:“It has been just over a month since I underwent fusion surgery on my back, and it is hard to express how much better I feel,” Woods wrote. “It was instant nerve relief. I haven’t felt this good in years.”He also opened up on the tough decision to go under the knife yet again:“I could no longer live with the pain I had. We tried every possible non-surgical route and nothing worked. I had good days and bad days, but the pain was usually there, and I couldn’t do much. Even lying down hurt. I had nerve pain with anything I did and was at the end of my rope. The process leading up to my decision to have surgery was exhaustive. I consulted with a specialist, and after weighing my options, that’s when I decided to go to Texas to have surgery.”

Despite a recovery time that will likely keep him out of action for many more months, Tiger wants everyone to know that while he won’t rush back, he has one goal in mind:

“My surgeon and physiotherapist say the operation was successful,” wrote Woods. “It’s just a matter of not screwing up and letting it fuse. I’m walking and doing my exercises, and taking my kids to and from school. All I can do is take it day by day. There’s no hurry. But, I want to say unequivocally, I want to play professional golf again.”

For all of the Tiger fans out there, that’s great to hear.

While Woods’ major count was at one point considered to be a hot topic within the sports world, it now seems more and more likely that the number won’t increase, given not only his general lack of health, but also in terms of the rising level of competition on the PGA Tour.

“I want to thank my doctors for their great work and support throughout this process. I also want to thank the fans for your phenomenal support. It means more than you know. There’s a long way to go, but as I said, words cannot convey how good it feels to be pain-free," Tiger explained.

Being pain-free might not translate to success on the course, but in terms of general quality of life, that’s a huge plus for Woods.