Woods delivers tame opening round at TPC
PONTE VEDRA BEACH — Like he had done so many times when he ruled golf, Tiger Woods turned a shaky opening round into something to build on.
Day One at The Players Championship also had moments never seen back in the glory days. A chunked 4-iron by Woods on the par-3 8th hole ended up 40 yards short of the hole in the water — a remote spot just 11 golfers had ended up in since 2003 — to set up a double bogey.
Yet, enough glimpses of the old Tiger emerged during his first competitive round in a month, giving him and his massive fan base hope.
When he birdied the 17th hole from the collar of the green, the gallery surrounding the famed island hole at TPC Sawgrass went wild, even leading to a rare tip of the cap by Woods, who headed to the 18th hole 1-under par.
But one swing erased all the hard work of the previous four-plus hours. Woods’ tee shot on the par-4 18th hole — the most difficult of the day — just found the water lining to the left side of the fairway to lead to a crushing double-bogey.
“Probably the highest score I could have shot today,” Woods said afterward. “I didn’t get much out of that round.”
No player used to squeeze more out of his rounds than Woods. Even when he did not have his A-game, he managed to keep himself in contention until he inevitably found his groove.
Woods’ opening 73 puts him six shots out of the lead of 5-under par, held by Hideki Matsuyama, David Hearn, Kevin Na and Charley Hoffman. Thirty-five players, including world No. 1 Rory McIlroy (-3), are within three shots of the lead.
“There’s a lot of guys who have got a chance going into the weekend,” Woods said. “Hopefully, I can put together some good rounds.”
Woods won the 2001 Players after a first-round 72, but he followed it with a 69 and shot 11-under par during the weekend. What, if any, magic Woods can produce now is anyone’s guess, likely including his own.
Woods has played one tournament in three months, the Masters. He tied for 17th on a golf course where he has won four times and where local knowledge can be critical.
Meanwhile, Woods has won twice at TPC Sawgrass, but has just two other top-10 finishes in 14 starts.
Woods looked uncomfortable from the start Thursday, pulling his opening tee shot well left on his way to an opening bogey. He manage a par 5 on the second hole after another bad tee shot, but Woods seemed to find his stride with a wedge to four feet for a birdie on the par-4 fourth hole.
Three solid pars followed, but Woods’ 4-iron on the eighth hole made 10-handicappers in the gallery cringe.
“I barely made contact,” Woods said.
An incredible birdie out of the woods on the par-5 ninth hole set the tone for a strong back nine in windy conditions until his final tee shot.
Taking an aggressive line over the water, Woods tried to cut a 3-wood onto the left side of the fairway. He came up a yard short.
“It’s only one bad swing, one bad shot,” he said. “I put together a pretty good round until 18.”
Former world No. 1 Adam Scott, playing alongside, said Woods acquitted himself well.
“He hit a couple bad shots, but it was tough out there today,” said Scott, who shot even par with a double bogey on 18, too. “I hit a couple bad shots, too. I don’t think anyone made any putts in our group, scores were pretty good considering nothing was going in.”
Woods needed just 12 putts on the back nine — and 27 overall. He left TPC Sawgrass thinking of what could have been, but whether Woods is onto something or in denial will be clear during the next few days.
“I should have shot in the 60s easily today,” he said.