Tiger Woods took part in his opening round on Thursday at the PGA Championship on Thursday. And while it wasn’t his best day, he remained steady and focused on taking things a day at a time and accomplishing one goal, making the cut.
Woods didn’t have his best stuff on Thursday that has made him such a beloved figure in golf over the years. In his opening round, he was only able to make three birdies. Four bogeys made Tiger finish with an opening round 72, one-over par at Valhalla Golf Club.
Could it have been better for Woods? Absolutely, Xander Schauffele showed how scorable the conditions were on Thursday, setting the course record with an opening round 62, a record for the best score ever at a PGA Championship event.
However, Woods has learned over the years that golf tournaments are far more than just one day. And that you need to make the cut in order to win the tournament.
“Well, you can’t win a tournament unless you make the cut,” Woods told reporters, via the New York Post after his opening round. “I’ve been on the cut number and have won tournaments, or I’ve been ahead and leading tournaments and I’ve won tournaments. But you have to get to the weekend in order to win a golf tournament.”
When discussing why his game may not have been as sharp as some expected, he said that it took him a bit to get into his “competitive mode”.
“It took me probably three holes to get back into competitive flow again and get a feel for hitting the ball out there in competition — adrenaline, temperatures, green speeds,” Woods said. “These are all things that normally I adjust to very quickly, and it just took me a few holes to get into it.”
Woods is indeed correct. In order to make a run at winning this tournament, which he has won four times in the past, he will need to make the cut. So it makes sense for him to be focused on that at the moment first and foremost.
With that being said, Woods will need to play much better on Friday in order to play the weekend. He currently sits outside of the projected cutline, which includes the top 70 players on the leaderboard and ties.
About Reice Shipley
Reice Shipley is a staff writer for Comeback Media that graduated from Ithaca College with a degree in Sports Media. He previously worked at Barrett Sports Media and is a fan of all things Syracuse sports.