LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Tiger Woods was back on the golf course Thursday morning at the 2024 PGA Championship for the first time in competition since his last-place finish at the 2024 Masters, and it showed early.
After an iffy start off the 10th tee on the back nine that featured numerous knee-knocking par saves, Woods found some form briefly on the front nine but leaked oil down the stretch en route to an opening-round 1-over 72 at Valhalla Golf Club. A four-time PGA Championship winner in 25 previous appearances, Woods won the 2000 PGA held here at the big ballpark in the Bluegrass State but missed the cut the last time the championship was at Valhalla in 2014.
“I am getting stronger for sure. It’s just that I just don’t play a whole lot of competitive rounds,” Woods said on Thursday. “I haven’t played since the Masters. So it’s a little bit different than being at home and playing a flat Florida course.”
Starting on the par-5 10th hole, Woods missed a great look at birdie that frankly didn’t come close to the hole. Missing greens and fairways can come with a real penalty at Valhalla, especially given the thick, juicy rough courtesy of three days of rain leading up to the first round, and Woods learned that lesson the hard way on the par-3 11th where he made bogey after airmailing the green.
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He got the shot back with his first birdie of the day two holes later on No. 13, but immediately gave it away after another poor tee shot on No. 15. Woods then fought off bogeys like Bruce Lee fending off attackers on Nos. 16-18 to make the turn at 1-over 37.
“It took me probably three holes to get back into competitive flow again and get a feel for hitting the ball out there in competition, adrenaline, temperatures, green speeds,” Woods explained. “These are all things that normally I adjust to very quickly, and it just took me a few holes to get into it.”
Woods rode the par train for two more holes around the turn before he made his second birdie of the day thanks to a dart to five feet on the par-3 3rd hole. His trusty putter then inexplicably cooled off on Nos. 4 and 5 as he missed a pair of birdies by mere inches. For a moment Woods got back in the red numbers after he walked in a birdie putt on the par-5 7th hole, but consecutive bogeys on Nos. 8 and 9 sealed the deal for his 1-over round.
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“I three-whipped the last two holes. Wasn’t very good,” Woods said of his closing stretch. “Bad speed on 8; whipped it past the hole. And 9, hit it short. Hit it off the heel of the putt and blocked the second one. So wasn’t very good on the last two holes.”
Once again in his pre-championship press conference, the 15-time major champion was adamant he can still hit whatever golf shot is required. It’s just a matter of walking and whether or not his surgically repaired leg that’s held together by pins and screws can hold up for 72 holes. Valhalla is far from an easy stroll, and at times Woods was carefully maneuvering his way up and down the hills on property. The walk will put some real pressure on his body, especially given Friday’s weather forecast of 71 degrees and a 77 percent chance of rain.
Thankfully for Woods he’ll have a 24-hour break from when he walked off the course to when he’ll tee off again Friday afternoon at 1:29 p.m. ET, once again alongside Keegan Bradley and Adam Scott.
