Tiger Woods Struggles in Round 3 at 2017 Hero World Challenge

After opening with two strong rounds in his long-awaited return to competitive golf, Tiger Woods struggled mightily in the third round of the Hero World Challenge on Saturday, shooting a three-over 75.

Woods ended the second round in fifth place, but after carding five bogeys and two birdies at the Albany Golf Club in New Providence, Bahamas, he walked off the course Saturday in a tie for 10th place at four-under.

Here is a look at the top of the leaderboard currently:

The Hero World Challenge marks Woods' first tournament since withdrawing from the Dubai Desert Classic in February.

Tiger underwent fusion surgery on his back in April, marking the fourth time he has endured a procedure involving his back.

It was apparent from the start of the third round that Woods would be in for a tough day in comparison to how he fared Thursday and Friday.

As seen in the following video courtesy of the PGA Tour, Tiger's tee shot found the sand, and he was unable to recover, settling for a bogey:

Woods uncharacteristically struggled on par-fives during the front nine as well with bogeys on both No. 3 and No. 6.

The 41-year-old veteran then bogeyed the par-four seventh to drop to four-over on the day and three-under for the tournament.

According to ESPN Stats & Info, Tiger fell off sharply at the end of the second round and start of the third round:

Woods parred the final two holes on the front nine to stop the bleeding, but much of the damage had already been done to his round.

ESPN's Jason Sobel speculated that he was possibly tiring in his first tournament in 10 months:

Golf Channel's Justin Ray lent credence to that theory by comparing Woods' front nine on Friday to what he did Saturday:

Tiger's issues continued on the back nine with a five on the par-four 10th, marking his fifth bogey of the round.

Sobel noted that the 14-time major champion's tournament was playing out similarly to what he did at last year's Hero World Challenge after returning from injury:

Woods had generated no momentum over the course of Saturday's round, but he still managed to will his way to a somewhat promising finish.

After pars on Nos. 11, 12 and 13, Tiger finally carded his first birdie of the day with a three on the par-four 14th:

Woods took a self-deprecating bow after sinking the birdie putt, and that seemed to loosen him up for the remainder of the round.

His best-played hole by far came on the par-three 17th when he nestled his tee shot safely on the green before converting another birdie putt:

Tiger closed out the round with a par on the 18th, meaning he played the final eight holes at a respectable two-under clip.

Woods walked off the course trailing leader Charley Hoffman by nine strokes, which makes a victory unlikely despite the fact that he held the lead at one point in the second round.

Based on the fact that Tiger has been on the shelf for so long, however, the tournament has still been a success regardless of Saturday's struggles.

If Woods can go out on a high note Sunday, then it will go a long way toward helping him establish himself as a potential contender heading toward the 2018 Masters.