Tiger Woods Struggles Late, Finishes 2018 Memorial Tournament at 9 Under

The back nine was not kind to Tiger Woods on Sunday.

Woods came into the final nine holes at the Memorial Tournament in Dublin, Ohio, sitting at 11 under following his two birdies on the front nine. But Woods couldn't continue his strong play, shooting three bogeys to just one birdie and ultimately closing his day at even par.

That left him at nine under for the tournament, well behind the leaders.

Woods focused on the positives after the round, however.

"I had some chances to shoot some good rounds this week," he said, per the Golf Channel's Tiger Tracker. "Overall, my game is where it needs to be heading into the U.S. Open, which is a positive."

For Woods, his putting betrayed him, as the final stats from both Sunday and his tournament showed: 

"If I just putt normally, I'm probably there with those guys in the last couple groups," Woods said after his round, according to Tiger Tracker.

Jason Sobel of the Action Network perhaps summed up Woods' tournament best: 

Things started well for Woods, as he birdied Nos. 1 and 5 and didn't register a bogey on the front nine. 

That trend immediately ended on the back nine, however, with a bogey on No. 10, though Woods made up for it quickly with a birdie on No. 11:

That would be his last birdie. 

On No. 13, he worked hard just to save bogey:

With two straight pars and a bogey on No. 16, Woods' chances were dashed. It was a tough finish to a tournament in which Woods played brilliant golf at points and struggled mightily at others.

Up next for Woods is the U.S. Open, which starts Thursday, June 14. For Woods, it will be the chance to get his first top-10 finish at a major since he finished sixth at the 2013 Open Championship. If he plays closer to the highs he displayed in Dublin this weekend and avoids the lows, he'll have a shot.