For the second straight round, Tiger Woods struggled on the greens at TPC Harding Park, falling down the leaderboard and out of contention at the PGA Championship.
It was a lackluster, unimpressive round that reeked of rust, of a player who looked as though he needed more PGA Tour reps rather than those in Jupiter, Fla.
The longest putt Woods made on his opening nine was a five-footer for par on the fifth hole. In his first 13 holes, he managed to roll in just 29 feet of putts. While he did manage to make a few in his last few holes, his poor play on the greens has been frustrating.
“I didn’t make anything early,” admitted Woods. “I had a couple opportunities to make a couple putts, and I didn’t. They were burning edges. I had a couple lip-outs, and just nothing really got the round going.”
Woods struggled to find the proper speed on the greens saying that the surfaces appeared faster than they were. To add to the difficulty, the practice putting green is faster than the greens on the course, Woods said.
While the missed putts were glaring, they were far from the only problem plaguing the 15-time major winner. He hit just four fairways on a course where the rough is as gnarly as steel wool. Too often, he left himself on the wrong side of the hole to set up an aggressive approach.
He registered negative numbers in a quartet of Strokes Gained categories: Off The Tee, Around The Green, Tee To Green and, of course Putting.
He is also yet to register an up-and-down from the bunker in seven attempts this week, something very un-Tigerlike.
This is just his seventh competitive round since February and while he doesn’t seem to feel his mistakes are due to a lack of play, he certainly looks as though he could use some more tournament time.
If there is anything positive, it’s that his body has gone through 54 holes without crying out. No back spasms, no glutes that refuse to fire or stiff necks from bad pillows.
On Sunday, Woods will look to find a way to play inspired golf. He knows he is not going to win but the competitor in him also knows that there are 72 holes in every tournament. He just has to convince himself that it means something.
“Last day and we still have another major championship to play and get ready for the Playoffs and we have the U.S. Open after that,” said Woods looking down the calendar. “We have some big events to be played, and hopefully tomorrow I can shoot something in the red and get it to under par for the tournament, and hopefully I can do that.”
The truth is, though that at 43, Woods is running out of chances to win majors. There are only so many left on his timeline and only so many swings left in his body.
With every one that he doesn’t win the odds of him catching Jack Nicklaus diminish, like blocks being removed from the Jenga tower. He’s getting older, the competition is getting better, and there’s a finite schedule ahead.
“There’s not as many as when I first started playing,” said Woods, who is playing in his 85th major this week. “The reality is that the golf courses are getting bigger. They are getting longer. The margin between making the cut and the lead is a lot smaller than it used to be. Used to be sometimes 12 to 15 shots.”
Woods still has the ability to play better than anyone else. He showed that at the Masters in 2019. Will he do it again?
TORONTO – Reigning PWHL MVP and scoring champ Natalie Spooner will miss the start of the regular season for the Toronto Sceptres, general manager Gina Kingsbury announced Tuesday on the first day of training camp.
The 33-year-old Spooner had knee surgery on her left anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) after she was checked into the boards by Minnesota’s Grace Zumwinkle in Game 3 of their best-of-five semifinal series on May 13.
She had a goal and an assist in three playoff games but did not finish the series. Toronto was up 2-1 in the semifinal at that time and eventually fell 3-2 in the series.
Spooner led the PWHL with 27 points in 24 games. Her 20 goals, including five game-winners, were nine more than the closest skater.
Kingsbury said there is no timeline, as the team wants the Toronto native at 100 per cent, but added that “she is doing really well” in her recovery.
The Sceptres open the PWHL season on Nov. 30 when they host the Boston Fleet.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 12, 2024.
LAHORE, Pakistan (AP) — A top official of the Pakistan Cricket Board declined Friday to confirm media reports that India has decided against playing any games in host Pakistan during next year’s Champions Trophy.
“My view is if there’s any problems, they (India) should tell us in writing,” PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi told reporters in Lahore. “I’ll share that with the media as well as with the government as soon as I get such a letter.”
Indian media reported Friday that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has communicated its concerns to all the Champions Trophy stakeholders, including the PCB, over the Feb. 19-March 9 tournament and would not play in arch-rival Pakistan.
The Times of India said that “Dubai is a strong candidate to host the fixtures involving the Men in Blue” for the 50-over tournament.
Such a solution would see Pakistan having to travel to a neutral venue to play India in a group match, with another potential meeting later in the tournament if both teams advanced from their group. The final is scheduled for March 9 in Pakistan with the specific venue not yet decided.
“Our stance is clear,” Naqvi said. “They need to give us in writing any objections they may have. Until now, no discussion of the hybrid model has happened, nor are we prepared to accept one.”
Political tensions have stopped bilateral cricket between the two nations since 2008 and they have competed in only multi-nation tournaments, including ICC World Cups.
“Cricket should be free of politics,” Naqvi said. “Any sport should not be entangled with politics. Our preparations for the Champions Trophy will continue unabated, and this will be a successful event.”
The PCB has already spent millions of dollars on the upgrade of stadiums in Karachi, Lahore and Rawalpindi which are due to host 15 Champions Trophy games. Naqvi hoped all the three stadiums will be ready over the next two months.
“Almost every country wants the Champions Trophy to be played here (in Pakistan),” Naqvi said. “I don’t think anyone should make this a political matter, and I don’t expect they will. I expect the tournament will be held at the home of the official hosts.”
Eight countries – Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, England, Australia, South Africa, New Zealand and Afghanistan – are due to compete in the tournament, the schedule of which is yet to be announced by the International Cricket Council.
“Normally the ICC announces the schedule of any major tournament 100 days before the event, and I hope they will announce it very soon,” Naqvi said.
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia – Ottawa‘s Gabriela Dabrowski and Erin Routliffe of New Zealand are through to the doubles final at the WTA Finals after a 7-6 (7), 6-1 victory over Nicole Melichar-Martinez of the United States and Australia’s Ellen Perez in semifinal action Friday.
Dabrowski and Routliffe won a hard-fought first set against serve when Routliffe’s quick reaction at the net to defend a Perez shot gave the duo set point, causing Perez to throw down her racket in frustration.
The second seeds then cruised through the second set, winning match point on serve when Melichar-Martinez couldn’t handle Routliffe’s shot.
The showdown was a rematch of last year’s semifinal, which Melichar-Martinez and Perez won in a super tiebreak.
Dabrowski and Routliffe will face the winner of a match between Katerina Siniakova and Taylor Townsend, and Hao-Ching Chan and Veronika Kudermetova in the final on Saturday.
Dabrowski is aiming to become the first Canadian to win a WTA Finals title.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2024.
