Tiger Woods has spent months thinking about the St. Andrews Open. He did everything he could to make sure he made it to the Old Course for the 150th edition of golf’s oldest major championship.
And once he arrived in Scotland, he did everything to make a solid career. He trained more on the spot than he did for the other two major tournaments he played – the Masters and the PGA Championship. He then skipped the US Open just to make sure he was ready for the Open.
His game, however, never responded when it mattered. Woods followed his first round 78 with a ** for missing the cut.
Here’s how his second round went:
No. 1: Par 4, 375 yards
The first hole at St. Andrews is much easier when the opening tee shot doesn’t land in a fresh divot. Woods’ tee shot found a divot on Thursday, his second went into the burn and he came out of a terrible double bogey. No divot on Friday, and things went much better. A safe approach to the green and better speed with the putter led to an uneventful par.
Score: By
Total for the day: Same
Total for the tournament: 6 out
No. 2: Par 4, 452 yards
Woods, walking with his hands in his pockets and his shoulders strained, looks cold on a cold Scottish morning. At the start of his round, however, his swing seems free. Solid practice and a controlled iron approach gave him a good chance of birdie. But the 20 footer gave up. Some of them — a lot of them — will have to come in if Woods wants to make the cut.
Score: By
Total for the day: Same
Total for the tournament: 6 out
No. 3: Par 4, 398 yards
Although he only had 101 yards on his second shot, Woods wasn’t having fun with a bent left forward pin on third. He played away from the hole and faced a 25-footer for a birdie. The putter, which gave him all sorts of trouble on Thursday, is working so far on Friday. He made the putt to get into the red numbers for the day.
Tiger finally has one to drop⛳️#The150thOpen pic.twitter.com/4PyYIo7Ovs
— The Open (@TheOpen) July 15, 2022
Score: birdie
Total for the day: 1 penny
Total for the tournament: 5 out
No. 4: Par 4, 480 yards
Woods hated his second shot. How do we know? Well, he dug his club into the ground while the approach was still in the air. It wouldn’t be the last time he got mad at the hole. A solid putt from the green left him a mere 3 feet for par. He missed it.
Score: Bogey
Total for the day: Same
Total for the tournament: 6 out
No. 5: Par 5, 570 yards
Woods hit a towering 3 wood into the green. The ball settled about 6 feet from the pin. One problem: it was the wrong pin. The fifth is one of the Old Course’s double greens. It is shared with the 13th. Woods’ ball therefore took off on the green and continued. When he finally stopped, he was 7 feet from the 13th hole but 117 feet from the fifth. The Eagle’s ridiculously long putt was short 10 feet. The more manageable birdie just missed on the left side.
Only in St Andrews… #The150thOpen pic.twitter.com/F5Jl1X4hrS
— The Open (@TheOpen) July 15, 2022
Score: By
Total for the day: Same
Total for the tournament: 6 out
No. 6: Par 4, 414 yards
Woods moved well on his surgically repaired right leg during his time in Scotland. But a grimace and the most pronounced limp of the week came after his wayward tee shot ended up in one of the fairway’s many bunkers. He had no chance of reaching the green and simply threw. By the time it was all over, he put another bogey on the scoreboard.
Score: Bogey
Total for the day: 1 out
Total for the tournament: 7 out
No. 7: Par 4, 371 yards
Woods shrugged off the jacket, the spitting rain abating after a gloomy morning. His game, however, did not brighten up. He had just 97 yards left for his second shot, but he hit the corner on the wrong side of the slope to leave a birdie putt longer than he wanted.
Score: By
Total for the day: 1 out
Total for the tournament: 7 out
No. 8: Par 3, 187 yards
For perhaps the first time in all rounds, Woods played a boring routine hole. He found the middle of the green. Just missed a 30-footer for a birdie. A ho-hum by.
Score: By
Total for the day: 1 out
Total for the tournament: 7 out
No. 9: Par 4, 352 yards
There were a lot of people standing on the tee as play receded. Woods’ drive settled just beside and to the right of the green. Then the problem that plagued him on the first 27 holes of this major championship reappeared. Woods had trouble judging speed when he putt or pitched around the green. His effort in the ninth was terribly short. Instead of a doable birdie putt, he had another 25 feet – which he missed.
Score: By
Total for the day: 1 out
Total for the tournament: 7 out
No. 10: Par 4, 386 yards
Woods started what will likely be his last nine holes of competitive golf for a while with a routine par. Fairway shot. Center of greenery. Two drama-free putts.
Score: By
Total for the day: 1 out
Total for the tournament: 7 out
No. 11: Par 3, 174 yards
Woods had been careful with approach shots for most of his second round. He seemed content to aim for the center of the green. Well, he went flag-chasing at 11th. But the tee shot failed and landed in the big pot bunker. Woods, however, powered it 12 feet out and made the putt for an unlikely par.
Score: By
Total for the day: 1 out
Total for the tournament: 7 out
No. 13: Par 4, 465 yards
Woods just can’t understand green gears. His second shot into the green took a huge bounce, leaving him with a 40-footer for a birdie. Once again, he left the path of the putt, well short. He made the 6-footer for par, but that was, again, a lot more work than necessary.
Score: By
Total for the day: 1 out
Total for the tournament: 7 out
No. 14: Par 5, 614 yards
Normally, Woods probably would have felt fine about a 370-yard drive, even if he ended up in the hay next to the fairway. That is, until he compares it to what he did the day before, when he hammered a 412 yards. His second shot on Friday found another of St. Andrews’ famous bunkers. He turned that 412-yard course Thursday into a birdie. He couldn’t do the same with Friday’s 370-yard outburst.
Score: By
Total for the day: 1 out
Total for the tournament: 7 out
No. 15: Par 4, 455 yards
Another hole, another long birdie putt. This one came after Woods jumped a short corner approach well beyond the hole. He almost broke through the 77-footer, but he made a short roll or two.
Score: By
Total for the day: 1 out
Total for the tournament: 7 out
No. 16: Par 4, 418 yards
The good news? Woods’ misfiring iron on the 16th green missed the green, but didn’t go into a bunker. The bad news? His chip shot did. A blast and another misfire led to a nasty double.
Score: Double bogie
Total for the day: 3 out
Total for the tournament: 9 out
No. 18: Par 4, 356 yards
No one, except perhaps Tiger Woods, knows if this was his last trip around St. Andrews. But Woods soaked up the crossing of the Swilcan Bridge and the final fairway. He wiped away his tears as he tipped his cap and waved to the adoring crowd that lined the Old Course. And he gave them something to cheer about with a perfect little golf chip, only on links, with a close-range 4-iron. But, in keeping with the course of his week, he missed the birdie putt.
All the thrills of watching Tiger Woods ride No. 18 at St. Andrews 👏
(Going through @The Open) pic.twitter.com/F7f5leoamn
—ESPN (@espn) July 15, 2022
Score: By
Total for the day: 3-over 75
Total for the tournament: 9 out