Decision over Open participation to be left as late as possible as Woods recovers from his injuries

The three-time champion told a press conference in America on Tuesday night that he will only play if he feels he can win the tournament and he has not hit a single shot for almost seven weeks.

Woods aggravated knee and Achilles injuries at the Players Championship in May and missed the US Open. He said: “I want to be out there playing, but I’m just not quite ready yet.

“Everything is progressing. Both the knee and the Achilles are getting better, but I haven’t hit any golf balls yet.

“It was a borderline call whether I should have played The Players. I wasn’t quite 100 per cent and unfortunately I hurt myself there.

“This time around it’s different – I’m setting no timetable. I’m just going to learn my lesson and come back when I’m 100 per cent.

“I don’t know when that is going to be. I am getting stronger, but I don’t know about the British. I’m just playing it by ear right now.

“I’ve played through injuries before, I’ve played hurt, I’ve played in pain – that’s just part of playing sports – but I’m not going to do that again.

“I’m being smarter this time. I broke my leg and still played - that’s not exactly smart.

“I know what the progression’s going to be, just like it was in ‘08. Putting, then chipping, then pitching, eventually getting to wedges. It’s also dependent on how it all feels on a daily basis.

“Obviously we’re trying to push it every day and challenge my leg every day and see how it responds.”

Woods insists there is no reason yet to call off his pursuit of Jack Nicklaus’s 18-major record. He has not moved from 14 for the past three years and his increased inactivity, coupled with Rory McIlroy’s demolition of the US Open field at Congressional has seen the eyes of the golfing world shift towards the Northern Irishman.

But Woods said: “He (Nicklaus) won when he was 46, right? I’ve still got some time.”

On McIlroy’s eight-shot US Open victory, Woods added: “That was some seriously good playing. He had softer conditions and he was able to go low, but also was able to continue pushing it.

“That’s what’s fun when you have a lead, to keep building on it and keep pushing. That was very impressive playing – to do that at a US Open to be that aggressive the entire time, that was cool to watch.”

Yorkshire’s Simon Dyson, John Parry and Richard Finch tee off at the French Open today knowing this is their penultimate chance to qualify for the Open.

The leading player, not otherwise exempt, in the first five and ties at le Golf National and the Barclays Scottish Open next week earns an invite. Danny Willett is also contending.