Gary Woodland shares second place at Texas Children's Houston Open, best finish since brain surgery in 2023

Gary Woodland didn’t win the Texas Children’s Houston Open, but his emotional runner-up finish is a big-picture victory in his comeback from brain surgery less than two years ago – and a reminder that his presence on the PGA TOUR, even after all he has been through, is far from ceremonial.

Woodland matched a course-record 8-under 62 in the final round at Memorial Park Golf Course, charging from six strokes back and nearly tracking down winner Min Woo Lee. Woodland shared second place with world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler at 19-under 261, one stroke back of Lee.

“It was great just to get those juices flowing again, just to see some results for that matter,” said Woodland after notching his best finish since winning the 2019 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach Golf Links.

This week’s significance for Woodland, though, extends well beyond the leaderboard.

When it comes to runner-up finishes in professional golf, this one’s atypical. The story has been oft told but is worth repeating here: After first experiencing unexplained symptoms in May 2023, Woodland underwent testing that revealed a brain lesion pressing on the part of the brain that controlled fear and anxiety. Doctors attempted to treat him with medication, but as symptoms worsened, Woodland elected to undergo a craniotomy on Sept. 19, 2023. During the lengthy surgery, doctors were able to remove a majority of the tumor, confirm it was benign and cut off the blood supply to prevent future growth.

Woodland returned to the TOUR at the 2024 Sony Open in Hawaii and finished No. 140 on that year’s FedExCup Fall standings, battling physical, mental and emotional symptoms all the while.

Even though he carded just one top-10 finish in 2024, a T9 at the Shriners Children’s Open, he maintained a belief that a return to his peak form was in the realm. There’s still plenty of ground to cover in that aspect, but the Texas Children’s Houston Open went a long way: It marked his first top-five finish since March 2022, and it was his first time in serious contention on the final hole since the surgery. Had Lee failed to get up and down from behind the 18th green Sunday, Woodland would’ve joined Lee and Scheffler for a three-man playoff.

After converting a short birdie on the 72nd hole at Memorial Park, Woodland tapped his chest before waving to the appreciative fans. It was a small gesture, physically, but one that said everything.

“I’m thankful to be out here,” Woodland said afterward. “I am extremely blessed to play this game for a living, to travel the world, to be around the people that are out here that are supporting me. And my family's here. My son's in first grade, so they don't travel much anymore. This is spring break for them and they were here. I thought they were leaving, so to see them when I got done, that's what I'm fighting for, right? That's why I'm out here, to prove to them that you can overcome anything and you've just got to keep fighting, and I think I showed a little bit of that today.”

Woodland also moved from No. 95 to No. 46 on the season-long FedExCup standings, a massive jump as he looks to retain full status for 2026. The top 70 on the FedExCup after the Wyndham Championship in August will qualify for the FedExCup Playoffs, and the top 100 on the FedExCup Fall after The RSM Classic in November will maintain exempt status for 2026. Woodland is exempt on TOUR through 2025 by virtue of his 2019 U.S. Open victory, but nothing past that is guaranteed, further amplifying the gravity of his showing in Houston.

Last month, Woodland became the seventh recipient of the PGA TOUR Courage Award, which is presented to a person who, through courage and perseverance, has overcome extraordinary adversity, such as personal tragedy or debilitating injury or illness, to make a significant and meaningful contribution to the game of golf.

He accepted the award at the Cognizant Classic in The Palm Beaches, saying in a press conference that week that he felt things were on the right track.

“I've got big goals and big dreams, and I'm starting to see signs of my game getting to where I want it to be. I'm excited for the rest of this year for sure,” Woodland said at the time. “The last thing I'm going to let this do is let this thing in my head stop my dreams, and that's why I fight every day. I want to be there for my kids and my family, but I want to chase my dreams, too. I've got a lot of dreams out here.”

Those dreams are moving closer to reality.