TIGER ON ICE, BUT RIGHT IN THE HUNT

COMEBACK kid Tiger Woods shot a first round 71 and declared “I’m right where I need to be”.

Woods, 46, grimaced in pain at times during a remarkable return to golf just 14 months after suffering horrific injuries in a car crash outside Los Angeles.

“I was able to finish up in the red. I’m only three back (four). I’m right where I need to be,” Woods said.

“This golf course is going to change dramatically – cooler, drier, windier … it’s going to get a lot more difficult.”

The five-time Masters champ said he was “sore” but excited to be back in contention. “That’s just the way it is. We’ve got three more (rounds) to go. There’s a long way to go and a lot of shots to be played.

“I’m very lucky to have this opportunity to be able to play, and not only that, to play in the Masters and to have this type of reception.

“I mean, the place was electric. I hadn’t played like this since ’19 when I won because in ’20 we had Covid and we had no one here, and I didn’t play last year. So to have the patrons fully out and to have that type of energy out there was awesome to feel.”

On what it took to get back to top level golf, Woods said: “People have no idea how hard it’s been. My team does. They’ve worked with me every single day. I’ve said this before, we haven’t taken a day off since I got out of the bed after those three months.

“Granted, some days are easier than others. Some days we push it pretty hard, and other days we don’t.

“So it’s commitment to getting back and commitment to getting back

to a level that I feel that I can still do it.

“If you would have seen how my leg looked to where it’s at now, the pictures – some of the guys know. They’ve seen the pictures, and they’ve come over to the house and they’ve seen it. “To see where I’ve been … to get from there to here, it was no easy task.”

The 15-time major winner said his evening would involve “lots of ice” and “lots of ice baths”.

“Just basically freezing myself to death. That’s just part of the deal. And getting all the swelling out as best as we possibly can and getting it mobile and warmed up, activated and explosive for the next day,” Woods said.