Tiger Woods' Pre-Trial Hearing Is Six Days Away. Here Is What August 4 Will Decide.

Tiger Woods at the 2018 Quicken Loans National at TPC Potomac on June 27, 2018. Credit: KA Sports Photos / CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Tiger Woods made his first public appearance since his March 27 arrest on June 23 - a PGA Tour press conference at the Travelers Championship. The same afternoon, a Martin County judge approved prosecutors’ access to his hospital records from the night of the crash. Since then, Woods has been visible at golf events. The criminal case has kept moving in the background. On August 4, both timelines arrive at the same point.

Woods, 50, was charged with DUI with property damage and refusal to submit to a DUI test after his Land Rover rolled onto its side on a residential road in Jupiter Island, Florida. Two hydrocodone pills were in his pocket. He refused a urine test. He pleaded not guilty and requested a trial by jury.

What the August 4 Hearing Will Address

The August 4 status hearing will address pending motions and, most critically, establish the road to trial. Prosecutors are now in possession of two sets of records: prescription drug records from a Palm Beach pharmacy covering January through March, obtained under a court order in May, and hospital records from the night of the crash - including drug screening results and statements about substance use - obtained under a June 23 agreement. The defense team challenged the prescription records on privacy grounds in May. The judge rejected that argument.

What the records contain has not been made public. What happens at August 4 will depend on what prosecutors found and what motions the defense plans to file before trial.

The Public Image vs. the Case Timeline

Woods has attended events, participated in tour governance, and been photographed at tournaments since his return from inpatient treatment in Switzerland. His defense team has kept him from being required to appear in person at pre-trial hearings. The comeback is visible. The court case is progressing on a parallel track that is not.

No trial date has been set. What August 4 determines - whether a trial will happen, when, and on what specific charges - will set the terms of that next chapter.

The Court Record

The hospital records ruling was reported by the Associated Press on July 2, 2026, and confirmed by Yahoo Sports, ESPN, and Golf Digest. Judge Darren Steele signed the June 23 agreement limiting records access to the prosecution team and defense. Woods has pleaded not guilty. Golf Digest reported he is not expected to play in the Open Championship.

What the Case Now Turns On

Prosecutors have the prescription records from the months before the crash and the hospital documentation from the night itself. The question the case turns on - whether the hydrocodone found in his pocket was connected to impaired driving - is now a matter of what those records show. August 4 will be the next public moment that reflects what both sides know.

References: Prosecutors Can Review Woods Medical Records in DUI Case | Tiger Woods DUI Case Takes Huge Turn as Judge Makes Major Ruling | Tiger Woods Makes Personal Announcement After First Public Appearance Since Arrest