Farmers Insurance Open 2017: Thursday Leaderboard Scores and Highlights

Tiger Woods returned to the PGA Tour for the first time in nearly a year-and-a-half Thursday, opening the Farmers Insurance Open from Torrey Pines in San Diego with a four-over 76. 

That put him 11 strokes off the lead after Justin Rose finished atop the leaderboard with a seven-under 65.

Here's a look at the leaders:

While Rose holds a one-stroke lead on Adam Hadwin and two strokes on a number of players, Woods was the story Thursday. As the PGA Tour on Twitter noted, he couldn't match his nice start to the round:

He'll certainly take that birdie to close out the round, however.

And as Jason Sobel of ESPN shared, a slow start wasn't surprising:

"I fought my tail off out there," Woods said after the round, per the Golf Channel's Tiger Tracker. 

It showed at times, per Justin Ray of the Golf Channel:

That was to be expected after such a long layoff. He also struggled with the pace of play at times.

"We were playing so much slower than I'm used to," he said, per Sobel. "It was just weird waiting. Hard to find a rhythm."

Woods was never going to win this tournament. Making the cut after such a long time away from the sport isn't a guarantee either. But there were positives to be taken from his round, and having him back in action is good for the sport overall.

It was an inconsistent round at best, but if there was a true disappointment on the day, it was world No. 1 Jason Day, who shot a surprising 73. While Day has plenty of time to recover over the weekend, making up an eight-stroke deficit is a huge task.

Other notable finishes include Phil Mickelson's 71 and Rickie Fowler and Dustin Johnson each shooting a 72.

Rose, meanwhile, was justifiably pleased with his round, as he told Sky Sports 4 in an interview after he concluded play (h/t the Press Association, via the Guardian):

"

I have been practising well at home. It was nice to get off to a good start and show my range practice pull through. It can be a tricky week. The South Course is really tough and if you don’t go low on the North Course you are going to feel like you’re behind. I have been making some putts and I drove the ball really well, especially on the key holes, the par fives.

"

Like Woods, he finished in style:

Mickelson also had one of the most impressive sequences of the day:

Ultimately, the day belonged to Rose, while the headlines belonged to Woods. That has been the case every time Woods has played in recent years. It will be fascinating to see if Woods can play himself into the weekend and avoid the cut, while Rose will look to hold off a talented group of players who are breathing down his neck.

San Diego is primed for another exciting round of golf Friday, in other words.