timeEgger Woods says he’s ambitious to “make a difference at the weekend” but even making the cut now feels close to fantasy for the limping legend following his first-round appearance at Royal Troon shot a disastrous 8-over-par 79.
On a gray summer day in Scotland, the crowd cheered the three-time British Open champion, but the standing ovations were mixed with sympathy and even derision. Tiger looked sore, he looked in pain, and most importantly, he looked well behind his pace as he struggled to keep up with contender Xander Schauffele, even in Walking around the court.
Tiger was candid about the nature of the round, although he seemed optimistic about his hopes for day two. “What do I have, three putts?” he said after returning to the clubhouse. “I didn’t hit the irons very close today and didn’t give myself a lot of scrutiny. So maybe shoot something in the mid-60s tomorrow for some action over the weekend.
The 48-year-old finished tied for 136th, and while his legend suggests anything is possible, watching him toil on the course taught us that fairy tales are unlikely to happen. With temperatures hovering around 16 degrees, Woods spent a lot of time trying to keep the muscles in his back and shoulders warm, often wincing at his movements. He showed little emotion as he walked around the court. Not even frustrated, as nearly every part of his game failed him.
It all started off solid, with a birdie on the par-4 third. After a 219-yard drive, Woods hit a sharp approach shot on the green and Woods coolly made the putt from 12 yards. However, he later admitted that this was the only satisfactory hole of the 18 holes and he went on to bogey the 4th, 5th (double), 7th and 8th holes before finishing in 40.
Although the strong winds that disrupted the race in the morning had subsided, conditions improved only slightly on the return trip. The delay on the 11th tee seemed to have had a particular impact. You could almost see Woods’ muscles freeze as Woods’ three-ball, Schauffele and Patrick Cantlay were forced to stand and wait while the camera tower was removed to clear the view for Wyndham Clark in front . His tee shot went into the rail and he struggled to pick up his tee shot, followed by a double bogey.
There was optimism in the air as Woods missed another shot on No. 12 and then recovered one on No. 13. Fans yell “Big Cat!” and meow timidly behind their hands, or “Keep grinding” before giggling at each other. A standing ovation awaited him when he reached the end of the round, but by then he had swallowed the tar on the 17th hole and fell again in front of the stands on the 18th hole.
Woods said any physical issues were caused by a lack of conditioning. “My body feels better than it did at the beginning of the year,” he said. “After the end of last year, things were tough and then I didn’t play a lot. I think as the year went on, I got better. I wish I could have played a little more, but I just left it at that. to the Grand Slam, just in case [injure myself in another tournament] And then get myself out of trouble. His fans must be hoping he saves a little more than what he has delivered so far.
