Tiger Woods thanks golfers, fans for red-and-black tribute

Tiger Woods broke his silence Sunday to say he’s going through a “tough time” after his near-fatal car crash but was deeply moved by fellow pro golfers and fans wearing his trademark red and black during the final round of Sunday’s World Golf Championships Workday Championship in Bradenton.

“It is hard to explain how touching today was when I turned on the tv and saw all the red shirts,” he said in a Twitter post Sunday evening, the first post on his account in his voice since the crash Tuesday in Los Angeles.

“To every golfer and every fan, you are truly helping me get through this tough time.”

Rory McIlroy, Patrick Reed, Tommy Fleetwood and Cameron Champ were among the many players and fans to wear red shirts and black pants — Woods’ traditional Sunday attire in tournaments — to show their support for Woods at the Concession course.

“I think just for everyone to show their appreciation for what he means to us out here,” McIlroy said about the tribute. “If there was no Tiger Woods, I just the think the tour and the game of golf in general would be in a worse place. He’s meant a lot to us, he still does mean a lot to us, and I think that was just a little way to show that.”

Woods, 45, has been recovering from surgery on his right leg after the carsh left him pinned in a badly mangled SUV.

He was driving from his hotel to a morning photo shoot when he lost control of the vehicle traveling down a steep hill, hit a median, crossed two lanes of oncoming traffic and rolled multiple times before coming to a stop on an embankment.

The cause of the wreck remains under investigation, Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva said during a Facebook Live chat. Villaneuva has said no charges are contemplated.

“This remains an accident. An accident is not a crime,” he said.

Woods’ Twitter account previously said he suffered “significant” injuries to his right lower leg.

“Comminuted open fractures affecting both the upper and lower portions of the tibia and fibula bones were stabilized by inserting a rod into the tibia,” the statement said.

“Additional injuries to the bones of the foot and ankle were stabilized with a combination of screws and pins,” it said, adding that surgeons had to “release” pressure caused by trauma to the muscles and soft tissue.