Louisville, Ky.
He then birdied both the 8th and 9th greens – the 17th and 18th holes – to finish the day with a disappointing 1-over 72.
Woods, playing for the first time since the majors, showed a good level of shyness as he struggled to hit fairways. But after a birdie on the 7th, he managed to get to the par-3 8th hole at 1, only to give it away.
“I three-stroked the last two holes. It wasn’t very good,” Woods said. “Bad speed on 8; whip it past the hole. And 9, hit it short. Hit it on the heel of the putt and bogey the second. So it wasn’t very good on the last two holes.
Woods made several good putts as he tried to find his form to save a bogey on the 11th and a par on the 12th.
“It’s just an ebb and flow of competition,” he said. It took me three holes to get back into the flow of the competition and get the feeling of competition, adrenaline, heat, speed on the green. These are all things I normally fix pretty quickly, and it took me a few holes to get into it.
Woods visited Valhalla last week for a practice round at the site where he won the 2000 PGA Championship. So he came to the course to work on the game on Sunday, before his daily practice before entering the competition.
Valhalla isn’t quite like Augusta National, but it’s still hilly and long in places, playing just under 7,600 yards for the opening round.
Woods tied for the Masters record 24th straight shot, including a strong 72 in the second round when many stumbled. But the day included extra holes due to poor weather, and Woods appeared to suffer from back problems during his third-round 82, the highest at Augusta National.
He finished tied for 60th, last among the qualifiers, and had a terrible score for 72 holes.
“Every day is a little different. Some days, it’s better than others,” Woods said of his physical stress. My body is like that. Some days, it feels great, and other days, a bit of a struggle.
“I’m definitely getting stronger. It’s just that I’m not playing a lot of tournament rounds. I haven’t played since the Masters. So it’s a little different than being at home and playing a flat Florida course.”
Woods is scheduled to tee off Friday at 1:29 p.m., with a good afternoon of rain and storms.