Breaking Down Tiger Woods' Opening Round Performance
The U.S. Open at the Olympic Club has already sunk Tiger Woods’ playing partners but not the 36-year-old.
Woods finished the first round at a one-under 69 to enter the clubhouse three strokes behind the leader, Michael Thompson, placing him in second place. Playing partners Phil Mickelson finished plus-6 and Bubba Watson plus-8.
Woods, who is seeking his 15th career major and fourth U.S. Open championship, has averaged a 68.5 in his 14 major victories and a 71.7 in his other 43 starts. He needs to play with momentum early on and has done as much on Thursday.
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Woods started on the ninth hole and put together five-straight pars, narrowly missing a birdie on No. 12, when he had a two-foot putt rim out around the hole.
A sloppy bogey on 14, where his ball bounced off the tiny green, was a rare mental lapse for Woods, who made up for it with a terrific birdie on the 17th.
He even accompanied it with a vintage Tiger fist pump.
He knocked in birdies on both the fourth and fifth holes, with the latter coming on an incredibly long putt that was vintage Tiger.
A slip-up on six derailed some of the momentum—his second shot sailed over the green and landed near the fence. He settled for the bogey, but it was clear Woods came out today feeling mentally sharp. He rebounded nicely to end with two-straight pars to keep him around the top of the leaderboard.
Woods had pinpoint accuracy with his driver and was spectacular with the putter, which is big considering it has been his downfall of late. Most importantly, he didn’t have any breakdowns mentally and seems to be as clearheaded as he’s been in quite some time.
The more Tiger’s confidence grows, the scarier he becomes.
It’s no secret that Woods is desperate for a major victory and has experienced little success in the last three years at the four big events of the year. He has been saddled with 14 major titles ever since his 2008 playoff win at the U.S. Open at Torrey Pines in San Diego.
Going into this weekend, he was the 7-1 favorite to win—a line that looked rather absurd considering his recent history.
After watching his first round, maybe Vegas is onto something.
(Odds courtesy of VegasInsider.com)
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