AUGUSTA, Ga. — What seemed impossible almost 14 months ago, unrealistic in December and unlikely as recently as a few weeks back is actually now a reality: Tiger Woods is returning to golf and playing the 86th Masters at Augusta National Golf Club.
Woods, who was injured in a frightening one-car crash Feb. 23, 2021, that was so severe doctors considered amputating his right leg, has not played official competitive golf since the final round of the 2020 Masters.
At 11:04 a.m. ET, alongside Louis Oosthuizen and Joaquin Niemann, Woods will begin the quest for his record-tying sixth green jacket and 16th major championship.
2022 MASTERS: TEE TIMES, TV COVERAGE AND MORE | HOW TO WATCH TIGER’S FIRST ROUND
Does he think, after all he’s been through, that he can win his first tournament back?
“I do,” he said earlier this week.
We will chart every step along the way in his first round:
The arrival
Woods arrives on the putting green a little after 10 a.m., about an hour before his scheduled tee time.
It’s time for another chapter. #themasters pic.twitter.com/DMS3Jyv2Yj
— The Masters (@TheMasters) April 7, 2022
No. 1: Par 4, 445 yards
Surrounded by thousands of patrons on the first tee, Woods clearly didn’t like his opening tee shot, slumping his shoulders and muttering to himself as his driver went wide right and short of the fairway bunker. Left with 175 yards after a modest 264-yard tee ball, he spun his approach back off the front edge. A so-so pitch shot left a 10-footer up the hill to save par, which he rolled right in the middle. It was a big par for Woods to start considering he is 16 over in his career on No. 1.
Tiger Woods begins his 24th Masters with a par on the first. #themasters pic.twitter.com/gTva7ZznsP
— The Masters (@TheMasters) April 7, 2022
Score: Par
Total: Even
No. 2: Par 5, 575 yards
When once he overpowered Augusta National, this version of Woods has to think, strategize his way around the place. No cutting corners or carrying bunkers. A young Tiger reaching for a 3-wood on the second tee? Never. Now? Sure. A well-positioned 3-wood off the tee and another on the layup left him in a good spot. Another so-so pitch, this time from 45 yards, left an uphill 16-footer. This time, he didn’t convert, as his birdie attempt slipped by on the low side.
Score: Par
Total: Even