Tiger Woods has insisted that he will not allow his disappointing return to have a negative impact on his confidence.
The former world number one made his first competitive appearance of 2015 on Thursday, but it was a difficult day for the American as he carded a two-over-par round of 73 on the opening day of the Waste Management Phoenix Open.
"This is my second tournament in six months, so I just need tournament rounds like this where I can fight through it, turn it around, grind through it and make adjustments on the fly," Woods told reporters. "[Caddie] Joey [LaCava] was on me all day today. He said, 'Don't worry about getting your numbers perfect, because it's not going to be that way yet. You're still working through it.'"
Despite attempting to remain upbeat at the end of his first round, Woods admitted that he was struggling with his new swing on a day when he had trouble with chips.
"I'm just having a hard time finding the bottom," he added. "Because of my old pattern, I was so steep on it, that I have a new grind on my wedge and sometimes it's hard to trust. This is a similar grind I used to use back in the early 2000s, but it's a different grind."
Woods, who is currently tied for 105th place, will have to be at T-70 or better to make the cut in Phoenix.
Callum Mulvihill
