PGA golf pro Tiger Woods watches Game 4 between the Orlando Magic and the Detroit Pistons in an NBA Eastern Conference playoff basketball series in Orlando, Fla., Saturday, May 10, 2008. Detroit won 90-89. (AP Photo/John Raoux)

Associated Press

ST. LOUIS — Tiger Woods is chipping and putting again, and he hopes to play in the Memorial in two weeks. But even if he can't compete until the U.S. Open, he doesn't expect the same result as his last layoff during a season.

Two years ago, Woods didn't play for nine weeks while coping with the death of his father. He returned to competition in the U.S. Open at Winged Foot and missed the cut for the only time in a major.

"That was a totally different mental situation than I am now," Woods said Monday. "Even when I came back for the Open, I probably wasn't ready to play yet. I was eager to get back and play and be in a competitive environment, but I wasn't ready to deal with all the things you have to deal with inside the ropes. ... And it showed, and I played terrible.

"This time around, it's totally different," he added. "Everything in my life is doing great. I'm just trying to get the leg organized enough to where I can play, and hopefully, I can play before. If not — if I can't play before — then hopefully, at the Open."

Woods had surgery on his left knee April 15 for the second time in five years, this time to clean out some cartilage.

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