JOHNS CREEK, Ga. - One hour after he started, Tiger Woods was atop the leaderboard Thursday at the PGA Championship and felt like the Tiger of old. He never imagined he would finish with his worst score ever in the opening round of a major.He opened with three birdies in five holes. He followed with three double bogeys over the next 10 holes.Woods started out with his name high on the board, right next to Steve Stricker, who went on to tie a major championship record with 63. Woods wound up toward the bottom, next to John Daly and 57-year-old Jerry Pate, with a 77.It was his worst round in a major since Woods shot an 81 in the vicious wind and pelting rain of Muirfield in the third round of the British Open nine years ago. And it was no mystery to him how it all happened."Got off to a great start today, was three under early, was having mechanical thoughts through those holes ... and I thought, 'I can let it go' and play by instinct and feel," he said. "And it just screwed up my whole round. I'm not at that point where I can do that yet."Woods returned to competition last week and completed his first tournament since the Masters, staying away from golf until he was certain that injuries to his left leg would no longer cause him trouble.The head -- not to mention his swing -- still have plenty of work.Woods looked serious as ever when he walked onto the putting green to begin warming up. Then came an 18-foot birdie putt on the opening hole, an aggressive five-wood from a blind shot in the pine straw on the par-five 12th, followed by a bunker shot from a plugged lie to 3 feet for another birdie.He hammered a drive more than 300 yards in the air on the 14th, leaving him a wedge to 3 feet for another birdie."He's back!" a fan cried out. Not quite.It was the worst opening round for Woods in any tournament since he shot 79 at the Australian Open in 1996. He is due to play Down Under again in November. At this rate, that might be his next tournament. If he misses the cut today -- he has done that only twice in the majors -- he would not be eligible for any PGA Tour events for six weeks.
Not since the final round at Bay Hill in 2007 had Woods made at least three double bogeys in one round. He started this carnage with a four-iron on the 254-yard 15th hole that didn't look awful until it landed, just to the right of the green and into the pond.Woods was in the sand a dozen times.He has talked about returning to his old swing while trying to learn a new one, and he said that was the case Thursday."And that's what's frustrating," Woods said. "I thought I was playing well enough that I don't have to do that. I can just go out there and play and let it go and just play by feel -- see the shot, hit the shot, feel it. And I'm not at that point yet. My same motor patterns get in there. I start fighting it, and I couldn't get it back."
Woods wasn't thinking about any of that Thursday. He talked afterward about how he missed a good opportunity to build on his good start by going away from what got him to that point."I was 3 under through five (holes) and figured I could start letting it go, play by instinct and feel," he said. "That screwed up my whole round."Woods' highest score in a major was an 81 during the third round of the British Open in 2002 at Muirfield, where he played in wind and rain.Woods missed two major championships this year due to knee and Achilles injuries that kept him from finishing a tournament since a tie for fourth at the Masters in April. He tried to come back at The Players Championship, where he withdrew after nine holes, then shut it down until last week's WGC-Bridgestone Invitational, where he tied for 37th.
Not since the final round at Bay Hill in 2007 had Woods made at least three double bogeys in one round. He started this carnage with a four-iron on the 254-yard 15th hole that didn't look awful until it landed, just to the right of the green and into the pond.Woods was in the sand a dozen times.He has talked about returning to his old swing while trying to learn a new one, and he said that was the case Thursday."And that's what's frustrating," Woods said. "I thought I was playing well enough that I don't have to do that. I can just go out there and play and let it go and just play by feel -- see the shot, hit the shot, feel it. And I'm not at that point yet. My same motor patterns get in there. I start fighting it, and I couldn't get it back."
Woods wasn't thinking about any of that Thursday. He talked afterward about how he missed a good opportunity to build on his good start by going away from what got him to that point."I was 3 under through five (holes) and figured I could start letting it go, play by instinct and feel," he said. "That screwed up my whole round."Woods' highest score in a major was an 81 during the third round of the British Open in 2002 at Muirfield, where he played in wind and rain.Woods missed two major championships this year due to knee and Achilles injuries that kept him from finishing a tournament since a tie for fourth at the Masters in April. He tried to come back at The Players Championship, where he withdrew after nine holes, then shut it down until last week's WGC-Bridgestone Invitational, where he tied for 37th.
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