Tiger Woods played a practice nine on Tuesday at Firestone Country Club in preparation for the former World No. 1’s first tournament since May, and said his surgically repaired knee is feeling better than it has in years.
WGC-Bridgestone Invitational 2011: Tiger Woods Confident, Oddsmakers Less So
Woods is now ranked 28th in the world, the lowest he’s been since his first full season. He had previously said, after withdrawing from TPC Sawgrass before the end of the second round in his most recent tournament, that he wouldn’t return until he was fully healthy.
Woods initially was prepared to play last weekend, but he said in his press conference Tuesday his doctors advised him to wait another week. He debuted a new chin-only goatee and a shiny new knee:
He did not appear affected at all during Tuesday’s practice round, either walking or swinging.
“The great thing is, I don’t feel a thing. It feels solid, it feels stable, no pain,” Woods said.
Woods will walk the course in fly new kicks and with a new caddy, longtime friend Bryon Bell, but oddsmakers don’t share his optimism.
According to super-tweeter Darren Rovell, BetOnline.com has Woods at 25/1 odds to win the tournament, the lowest they’ve ever had for him, and Sportsbook.com opened betting at 20/1, only to raise them to 15/1 after heavy action.
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