Tiger struggles for 69 at Australian Masters
MELBOURNE, Australia Tiger Woods played 14 holes before finally missing a green in the opening round of the Australian Masters, which would seem like the ideal start to defending a title for the last time this year.
Trouble was, he couldn’t get a putt close to the hole, which wasn’t the first time that happened this year.
Woods had to settle for a 2-under 69 today, leaving him four shots behind a trio of players who competed before far fewer fans and had far less trouble on the greens at Victoria Golf Club.
“That was probably the highest score I could have shot,” Woods said.
Adam Bland and Alistair Presnell, roommates on the Nationwide Tour in the United States, each had a 6-under 65 in the cool morning before the greens became crisp under a warming afternoon sun. They were joined late in the day by Daniel Gaunt, whose career took a sudden turn for the better this year, considering he was working in a golf shop this spring.
“Rock bottom,” said Gaunt, a feeling Woods knows all too well.
The Australian Masters represents the 82nd worldwide victory for Woods, and also his most recent. That was a year ago at Kingston Heath, where his return Down Under after an 11-year absence brought the kind of crowds reminiscent of a major, all of them eager to see the world’s No. 1 player.
That was 12 days before his car accident in the middle-of-the-night led to revelations of womanizing. Woods returned to defend his title as the No. 2 player in the world he lost his top ranking to Lee Westwood two weeks ago who is trying to retool his swing.
Typical of his year, it was the putter that held him back.
Woods hit it in all the right spots, which at Victoria means below the hole. But he rarely had enough pace on his putts, and his lone bogey came on a three-putt from 45 feet that he left about 8 feet short. On the final hole, he avoided a similar mistake by holing a 7-footer for par. It left him in a tie for 17th and with few worries.
“I could have easily been 4, 5, 6 under,” Woods said. “I don’t know what the guys are going to do this afternoon, but I’m right there.”
