Woods' manager Mark Steinberg said the golf star suffered multiple leg injuries in the car crash and was undergoing surgery.

"Tiger Woods was in a single-car accident this morning in California where he suffered multiple leg injuries. He is currently in surgery and we thank you for your privacy and support," Mr Steinberg said.

The vehicle sustained major damage and Woods was removed from the wreck with the "jaws of life" by firefighters and paramedics.

Footage from a KABC-TV local television helicopter flying over the scene of Woods' accident showed a car on its side with the front end heavily damaged.

Air bags appeared to have deployed.

The wreckage appeared to be just off the side of a road on a hillside.

Woods, whose first name is Eldrick, was the sole occupant of the vehicle, the sheriff's department said.

The crash occurred shortly before 7:15am Tuesday (local time), officials said.

Woods was in Los Angeles over the weekend as the tournament host of the Genesis Invitational at Riviera, where he presented the trophy.

He was to spend Monday and Tuesday filming with Discovery-owned GOLFTV, with whom he has an endorsement contract.

Woods last played on December 20 in the PNC Championship with his 11-year-old son, Charlie.

He had a fifth surgery on his back, a microdiscectomy, two days before Christmas and gave no indication when he would return to competition.

This is the third time Woods has been involved in a car incident.

The most notorious was the early morning after Thanksgiving in 2009, when his SUV ran over a fire hydrant and hit a tree.

That was the start of shocking revelations that he had been cheating on his wife with multiple women.

Woods lost major corporate sponsorship, went to a rehabilitation clinic in Mississippi and did not return to golf for five months.

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