Golf superstar Tiger Woods has made a sobering assessment of his comeback after a six-month break from competition. “I felt mentally rusty and not in the same mental state as usual and mentally made a lot of mistakes that I don’t normally make,” the US idol said after the first round at his invitational tournament in the Bahamas. Woods stayed three shots above the course standard on the par-72 Hero World Challenge course.
The 15-time major winner started at 11:52 a.m. local time (5:52 p.m./CET) in a light pink shirt and black pants. His first tee shot landed safely on the fairway after almost 300 meters. The long-time number one in the world’s swing seemed round and controlled almost throughout the entire 18 holes. However, from the 15th hole onwards, Woods lost some ground and made too many misses towards the end. “I’m a little worn out now,” he said after the round.
“I have pain everywhere”
At the start of the competition with 19 hand-picked competitors, including world number one Scottie Scheffler and defending champion Viktor Hovland, Woods was a bit of a mystery himself. “I felt ready for the game and the tournament and played solidly most of the time, but made bad shots,” said the 47-year-old, looking back on his first impressions of the tournament since his early exit from the Masters in Augusta last April.
Woods is still struggling with the consequences of a serious car accident in February 2021. The 15-time major winner took a break for over a year before Woods returned to 47th place at the 2022 Masters. In this year’s edition, however, the Californian had to give up in the third round before the effects of a broken ankle bone suffered in the 2021 crash forced the long-time world number one, who has currently slipped to 1328th place, to undergo another operation on his right ankle.
“Mentally rusty”: the long-time world number one is now ranked 1328th : Image: AFP
As hoped, the procedure did not cause any problems for Woods at the start on New Providence Island – but it did cause problems for his body as a whole. “I feel sore and in pain everywhere,” said Woods, describing his condition: “My legs, my back and my neck just hurt from the beating. The pace at a tournament is simply different than in training.”
Wolfgang Scheffler Published/Updated: Recommendations: 2 Wolfgang Scheffler, Augusta Published/Updated: , Recommendations: 6 Published/Updated: Recommendations: 2
After returning to the clubhouse, which the Americans Brian Harman and Tony Finau achieved as the best of the day after rounds of 67, Woods announced additional shifts with his physiotherapist: “We have a lot to do in the weight room to get in the right shape for the next rounds get.”
