Tiger Woods Extends Lead After 9 Holes in Final Round of 2018 Tour Championship

A strong front nine in his final round Sunday helped Tiger Woods build a five-stroke lead with nine holes remaining at the 2018 Tour Championship.

The 42-year-old entered the day with a three-stroke lead and kept a good distance after shooting a 34 on the first nine holes, good for one stroke under par for the day and 13 under for the tournament. Justin Rose is in second place at eight under.

Although his first-half performance wasn't quite as good as his 30 from Round 3, it's been more than enough to stay in front while others have struggled.

Woods showed his confidence from the start of the round with a perfect opening hole that ended in a birdie:

Shane Bacon of Fox Sports provided context for the start:

While the golfer wasn't quite as aggressive as he was Saturday when he birdied six of his first seven holes, he took advantage of his lead from there and avoided mistakes.

The superstar knocked in par after par while the rest of the field couldn't do much to keep up.

Bob Harig of ESPN broke down the battle as the round continued:

A bogey by Justin Rose on No. 5 then gave Woods a five-stroke lead over everyone else in the field, while Rory McIlroy fell back even more with a double bogey on the seventh hole.

Meanwhile, Woods did a good job of surviving his mistakes, including this duff on the par-five sixth hole:

He ended his front nine with just one birdie but eight pars, giving the field little chance at a comeback. Jason Sobel of Action Network joked about the performance:

Now the challenge for him will be to finish things off with the final nine holes. There is some concern after failing to find many birdies on the back nine Saturday, but his cushion should provide some breathing room.

If all goes well, Woods will earn his first PGA Tour victory in five years.