Woods is aiming to finally break his Riviera duck

TIGER Woods will hope 13 proves to be his lucky number as he seeks to fill in one of the few gaps on his incredible golfing CV.

Woods made his PGA Tour debut as a 16-year-old schoolboy in the 1992 Los Angeles Open but, like his idol Jack Nicklaus, has never tasted victory at the iconic Riviera Country Club.

Now called the Genesis Open, the tournament is the only one where Woods has made 10 appearances or more without a victory, the 14-time Major winner’s best results in 12 starts being back-to-back runner-up finishes in 1998 and 1999.

For the second year running Woods (below) has been paired with Rory McIlroy and Justin Thomas for the first two rounds, a decision which could have McIlroy reaching for the painkillers again.

“It might always have been like this, like the whole Tiger mania, but playing in front of all that, he (Woods) gives up half a shot a day on the field,” McIlroy said 12 months ago.

“It’s two shots a tournament he has to give. So, whether that calms down the more he plays and it doesn’t become such a novelty that he’s back out again, I don’t know... but it’s tiring. I’ve got a headache after all that.”

McIlroy went on to finish 20th last year and comes into the event on the back of top-five finishes in his two tournaments to date in 2019.

Six of the world’s top 10 are in the field along with World No.16 and defending champion Bubba Watson.