Tiger Woods tees off at Genesis Invitational: First round updates

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Tiger Woods will be back on the golf course for his first PGA Tour tournament since the Masters.

The Genesis Invitational tees off Thursday from Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades, California, a place with which Woods is very familiar but has never won. In fact, it’s the course he’s played the most as a pro (12 tournaments) without having won.

The 15-time major winner had ankle surgery in April, shortly after withdrawing from the Masters during the third round due to plantar fasciitis in his foot. Woods played in the Hero World Challenge in December and finished in 18th place.

USA TODAY Sports will provide updates from Woods’ first round at Riviera.

Woods back to even after the 12th

There were nervy moments on the challenging 12th hole for Woods. After entering the hole hitting six of nine fairways, Woods sent his tee shot wide right into the line of spectators to the right of the fairway. He wasn’t alone in the wilderness, as Justin Thomas also went wide right off the tee. Amongst the careful watch of cellphone-holding gallery, Woods sent his second shot into the bunker but recovered to get his third shot onto the green. Woods missed his putt for par, but tapped in for the bogey.

Woods gets back under par on the 11th

Woods took advantage of the birdie-friendly 11th hole at Riviera to get back under par. After hitting the fairway off the tee, Woods deposited his second shot among the gathered spectators to the left of the fairway. His third shot was barely off the mark, as it hit the edge of the rough rather than the fringe of the green. Woods coolly sank the putt from the fringes of the green to get back to one under par.

Woods finds bunker on 10th, back to even par after bogey

Tiger found immediate trouble starting his second nine. On the 10th, his tee shot went over the green and into the left rear greenside bunker. He managed to get out of trouble and back on the green, leaving himself an eight-foot putt for par, but he misses and bogeys the hole

Tiger finishes front nine at 1-under, tied for 18th place

Finishing up his play on the front nine, Woods’ tee shot on another par 4 hit the left fairway, leaving him a manageable 164 yards to try to score another birdie. A four-foot putt on his third shot was true, as he settled for par and a score of -1 after the first nine holes

Patrick Cantlay, Jordan Spieth, and Will Zalatoris are tied for the lead at 5-under.

On No. 8, Woods hit the tee to his left, landing in the right fairway on the par 4, 436-yard hole, with the second hitting the green just feet from the rough. He was left with a 17-foot putt for birdie. He missed the birdie putt but tapped in the easy two-foot shot for par.

Tiger hit the fairway on No. 7, setting up another golden opportunity to make waves on the leaderboard. His second shot left him about 40 feet away from the cup. Later, his five-foot tap-in saved par.

Tiger back under par after birdie on No. 6

At No. 6, with another chance to capitalize on a par three, Woods drove his tee shot right down the green continuing his consistent iron play, landing 14 feet from the hole. He is back under par after the birdie putt.

Tiger’s tee shot No. 5 gets him off to another excellent start, hitting the right fairway 152 yards from the hole using a three-wood. He left his second shot about eight feet from the cup, with a chance to get back under par. But his putter failed him as he overshot the hole, leaving him a par tap in from two feet.

Tiger birdies No. 4, back to even after two straight bogeys

No. 4 is a 232-yard par 3 and Woods’ tee was excellent, landing on the green, 15 feet from the hole, as he tries to bounce back after two straight bogeys. He easily taps in for the birdie to get back even par.

Tiger Woods bogeys holes No. 2 and 3, sits at 1-over

On the 448-yard, par 4 No. 3, Tiger’s tee shot went well off to the right, landing in rough on the golf cart path, and his second shot was no better, which he plotted in the right front of the greenside bunker. The third shot out of the bunker landed 6 feet from the hole, but he missed the putt badly and had to chip in from 3 feet, bogeying his second straight hole.

So far, Tiger is driving the ball well and hit the middle of the fairway on No. 2 off the tee, leaving him 174 yards to hole on the 480-yard par 4. The second shot hit just to the right of the fairway, leaving him 50 yards to try to save par. His third shot over the hole still landed on the green 15 feet from the cup, but that good start ended with a bogey on No. 2, dropping him back to even par.

Tiger Woods tees off, birdies first hole

Woods is paired with Justin Thomas and Gary Woodland. Opening on hole No. 1, a 498-yard par 5, Woods’ tee shot went nearly 300 yards to the right in some rough, just off the fairway. He used a 5-wood on the second shot and left the third shot on the green three feet from the hole for an excellent birdie opportunity. Woods taps in for birdie.

Woods is sporting his new threads, Sun Day Red, after announcing a split with Nike last month. Woods is wearing a white sweater with a black shirt underneath and a black hat with the new tiger logo. The logo has 15 stripes, one for each of Woods’ 15 Major victories. He is also debuting a new golf ball, the 2024 Bridgestone TOUR B X.

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