Tiger Woods Crash Investigation Complete But Not Public Yet

RANCHO PALOS VERDES, CA — The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department has concluded its investigation into the Rancho Palos Verdes single-vehicle rollover crash that left golf legend Tiger Woods seriously injured, but investigators are withholding the information, citing privacy concerns, officials said Wednesday.

"A cause has been determined. The investigation has been concluded; however, we reached out to Tiger Woods and his personnel, and there are some privacy issues on releasing information on the investigation, so we're going to ask them if they waive the privacy, and then we will be able to do a full release on all the information regarding the accident," Sheriff Alex Villanueva said Wednesday in a live video briefing.

"We have all the contents of the black box," Villanueva said, referring to data memory from the vehicle that is expected to reveal more information about the crash. "We've got everything. It's completed, signed, sealed and delivered; however, we can't release it without the permission of the people involved in the collision."

Woods is recovering at home in Florida, he announced on Twitter.

"Happy to report that I am back home and continuing my recovery," Woods said. "I am so grateful for the outpouring of support and encouragement that I have received over the past few weeks. Thank you to the incredible surgeons, doctors, nurses and staff at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center and Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. You have all taken such great care of me and I cannot thank you enough. I will be recovering at home and working on getting stronger every day."

Woods was injured in a rollover car crash on Feb. 23 near Rancho Palos Verdes and Rolling Hills Estates. He suffered significant leg injuries and underwent emergency surgery by orthopedic trauma specialists at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center, a Level 1 trauma center, said Anish Mahajan, chief medical officer and interim CEO at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center.

Woods was alone driving the 2021 Genesis GV80 downhill on a curve, heading northbound on Hawthorne Boulevard, when he crashed into a "Welcome to Rolling Hills Estates" sign in the center median, crossed two oncoming lanes and rolled over several times.

He had hosted the Genesis Invitational golf tournament at the Riviera Country Club and had a two-day Golf Digest/GOLFTV shoot and had even spent time with Dwayne Wade and comedian David Spade.

At the time, Woods was recovering from back surgery in December and said he was hoping to return to playing. He has battled back issues in recent years and last competed in a golf tournament on Dec. 20 at the PNC Championship in Orlando. He subsequently had surgery to remove a pressurized disc fragment that was pinching a nerve, his first surgery since undergoing a spinal fusion in April 2017.

The 45-year-old golfer was trapped inside the car wreckage, and firefighters needed an ax and other tools to pull him from the SUV through the windshield, officials said. Woods was taken to Harbor-UCLA Medical Center, where he underwent surgery for multiple leg injuries. No other vehicles were involved.

Woods was not able to stand on his feet following the crash, Deputy Carlos Gonzalez said. Gonzalez was the first to arrive at the crash and found Woods seated in the vehicle wearing a seat belt, he said.

Woods was stable but had serious injuries. The seatbelt helped save his life, Gonzalez added. "It's very fortunate that Tiger Woods was able to come out of this alive," Gonzalez said.

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— Tiger Woods (@TigerWoods) March 16, 2021

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