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Playing one of his favorite events at his favorite course in the world, Tiger Woods showed considerable rust en route to an opening 6-over 78 in the 150th Open Championship on Thursday at St. Andrews. On the course for the first time since the third round of the PGA Championship in May, Woods’ score across the 18 holes was the highest of his career as a professional, matching the 78 he shot at the Old Course as an amateur in the final round of the 1995 Open.
Catching a bad break off his first tee, the 15-time major winner’s ball found a divot in the middle of the fairway on No. 1 and subsequently dumped his approach into the burn in front of the green — just as he did in the first round of the 2015 Open at St. Andrews.
Unable to get up and down after taking a drop, Woods carded a double bogey. It did not get much better from there.
Consecutive bogeys on Nos. 3 and 4 put Woods at 4 over through his first four holes, and after making two straight pars, it felt as if the 46-year-old was finally settling into his own. However, in a shock to the system, Woods once again made a fatal mistake when his tee shot on the short par-4 seventh found the fairway bunker on the short par-4 12th, leading to another double bogey.
As if the mountain to begin the week wasn’t high enough, Woods’ play through the first seven holes made it considerably steeper to climb. Despite the poor start, he showed resolve with back-to-back birdies around the turn. After making it on the green in regulation on the difficult par-3 11th, a two-putt par would have seen Woods head to the drivable 12th at 4 over with a chance to salvage his round.
Instead, a sloppy three-putt…
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Source : cbssports
