Two years after believing his career was over, Tiger Woods put himself in contention for a first major title since 2008 on the opening day of the 83rd Masters.
Woods needed a nerve block simply to attend the Champions Dinner at Augusta National in 2017 and flew to London the same evening to consult a specialist about his ongoing back problems.
"I was done at that particular time," Woods said when accepting an award from the Golf Writers Association of America in Augusta on Tuesday. "I had to get a nerve block just to be able to walk and come to the dinner.
Last night at the GWAA awards, @TigerWoods was at his best. I might have had my issues with Tiger, but he showed last night a unique look into a person that is worth learning more about as he provided an insight rarely seen. https://t.co/WqR5A8UHJH #ISPSHANDAGWAADinner — Alex Miceli (@alexmiceli) April 11, 2019
"It was tough and uncomfortable. I ended up going to England that night, saw a specialist there, [and] they recommended unfortunately for me the only way to get rid of the pain I was living in was to have the spinal fusion surgery."
The operation was a last roll of the dice but proved a success, Woods returning to competition in November that year and then playing a full season in 2018, culminating in his 80th PGA Tour in the Tour Championship in Atlanta.
Woods had also contended for the last two majors of the year and carried on where he left off at Augusta, carding four birdies and two bogeys in an opening 70 to lie a shot off the clubhouse lead shared by playing partner Jon Rahm, former champion Adam Scott and South African debutant Justin Harding.
"I thought I hit a lot of good shots and if I missed I missed in the correct
spots and had some of the simpler up and downs because of that," Woods told
ESPN. "I missed a few (putts) for sure, misread a couple and hit one bad one at six but other than that a good solid day."
.@TigerWoods escapes from the trees on No. 14 and converts his 25-foot birdie putt to claim a share of the lead. pic.twitter.com/ub6VGCYxNI — Masters Tournament (@TheMasters) April 11, 2019
Seeking a fifth Masters title but a first since 2005, Woods had quietly reached the 14th hole in two under par before a pulled tee shot set up a moment of magic from the former world number one.
Spotting a gap high in the pines, Woods threaded his second shot perfectly through the opening and on to the green, where he holed from 25 feet for an unlikely birdie.
That took the 43-year-old into a share of the lead but he bogeyed the 17th and had to save par on the last after finding sand off the tee.
Coincidentally, Woods shot 70 in the first round of each of his first three Masters victories and since lying 33rd after an opening 74 in his 2005 triumph, the last 13 champions were all inside the top 10 after the opening round.
A 35-foot birdie putt for @McIlroyRory on No. 16 brings him under par. pic.twitter.com/oIEVTxsnjg — Masters Tournament (@TheMasters) April 11, 2019
That was bad news for Rory McIlroy, who needs to win the Masters to complete a career grand slam but was outside the top 40 after an opening 73.
McIlroy was two over par for the day after bogeys on the 10th and 11th but rallied superbly to birdie the 13th, 15th and 16th, only to drop shots on the last two holes.
ga('create', 'UA-72310761-1', 'auto', {'name': 'pacontentapi'});
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'referrer', location.origin);
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension1', 'By Phil Casey, Press Association Sport Golf Correspondent, Augusta');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension2', '6578577e-4807-4935-a130-6a652b9aa104');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension3', 'paservice:sport,paservice:sport:uk,paservice:sport:world');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension6', 'story');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension7', 'composite');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension8', null);
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension9', 'sport:golf,sport:other');
ga('pacontentapi.send', 'pageview', { 'location': location.href, 'page': (location.pathname + location.search + location.hash), 'title': 'Woods rolls back the years with impressive showing on day one of the Masters'});
