When Tiger exited the woods on the first extra hole of the Accenture Match Play Tournament on Wednesday, he knew the next
hole he’d be playing would be in the opening round of next week’s Honda Classic.
Woods lengthened his battle with Thomas Bjorn by sinking a clutch birdie putt on 18. But his 3 wood on the 19th hole of the day went awry, and the steady Bjorn took the deciding hole.
“It’s easy to put the ball in the fairway, and I couldn’t even do that,” Woods said.
No, he couldn’t. And it seemed to disturb the world’s most-famous golfer more than usual.
Woods, whose 5-year reign as the world’s top golfer ended last Halloween, has struggled since his return to the game. After spending time trying to put his highly publicized trysts and subsequent divorce behind him, Woods has mostly struggled on the course. Last year was the first since he turned pro that he hadn’t won a tournament. In three events this year, he hasn’t cracked the top 20. But Woods, now ranked third on the PGA Tour, believes he simply needs more repetitions to regain his form.
But his problems could very easily be mental. Besides the embarrassing revelation of his numerous affairs two Thanksgivings ago, Woods has lost most of his endorsement deals. Add to that a staggering divorce settlement, and you have a player whose mind might understandably be on other things.
Among other notable players, Lee Westwood, the current world No. 1, won his match-up with Henrik Stenson, 3-2. Phil Mickelson won his battle with Brendan Jones, 6-5. The event is being held in Marana, Ariz.
