Battling Tiger makes most of reprieve
AN unexpected reprieve from a missed halfway cut was one bonus for Tiger Woods. The fact he was in a fit enough state to make the most of it in the third round of the Memorial Tournament yesterday was definitely another.
Which Tiger would emerge from the dawn shadows? An 8am teetime hardly seemed fair for a man who had looked not only his 44 years but about another 20 more on Friday as he struggled physically to an error-strewn 76.
It says everything about Woods and his inextinguishable competitive drive that he still finished such a disappointing round with two birdies in his last three holes — and was desperate for the cut-line to move a shot to enable him to have another bash. He got his wish, and made it count yesterday with a decent score of 71. After five months out, perhaps more significant was another competitive round under his belt, with the USPGA Championship just over a fortnight away.
‘It was important I got the chance to get back out there,’ he conceded. ‘I was fortunate the cutline moved in my favour, and I felt I played well to take advantage. I could move through the ball like I did on the first day rather than how I was moving on the second. That’s how it is these days.’
Alongside him in an early morning box-office pairing — if only there was a box office — was Brooks Koepka, who will be trying to win the US PGA for the third year in a row in San Francisco next month.
On this evidence, you wouldn’t put a dime on his chances. Rather worryingly, he still seems to be struggling with the knee problem he had surgery on, and that curtailed his season last year. It’s never a good sign when you make Tiger look the healthiest player in the group.
Koepka admitted afterwards that he was still struggling for fitness. ‘I had an MRI on the knee on Monday because there are still some issues with it and nothing seems to have improved,’ he revealed.
Koepka’s round was at least adventurous. He began bogey, double bogey, had five birdies in seven holes during the middle of the round — before going 6, 6 on the driveable par four 14th and the relatively easy par five 15th. He finished with a 73.
Woods’s progress was more sedate. What was encouraging was the pep was back in his long game. On Friday, it was sad to see him lagging a mile behind playing partner Rory McIlroy, owing to stiffness in his fused back. Here, moving far more freely, he had four birdies, while his three bogeys were more through lack of competitive sharpness than any physical ailments.
Six one-putts to begin was a nice contrast to Friday, when he threeputted twice in his first four holes. So was hitting a respectable eight out of 14 fairways. ‘I’m enjoying getting back into the flow of competing again,’ he concluded.