Tiger Woods a total mess off the tee in awful start at Memorial

Tiger Woods, who had a terrible case of the lefts and rights off the tee to start his opening round at the Memorial, went out in 40 on his first nine at Muirfield Village. The 4-over start has him second-to-last among the group that’s playing in the morning.

He capped a wild left-right-left opening with a tee shot on the 18th that went completely off the course and out of bounds. The 18th is a hole with plenty of room on the right, but Woods still manage to send one off the property.

His second tee shot wasn’t much better, sailing way right again, but at least it stayed on the course. He went on to make a double bogey. As you can imagine, he’s not particularly pleased.

Woods, playing in just his fifth PGA Tour event of the season after a hideous start to his 2015 season, entered the week with “a lot of confidence” in his retooled golf swing. He also said his swing was “evolving” and “getting better,” but it sure did not appear to be doing either as he sprayed tee shots all over Muirfield Village.

He started the day with a yanked drive left and bogey, then, after another drive left, put one in the water for a second straight bogey at the top of his round.

Following those first two drives left, Woods started blocking everything out to the right. He went wide to that side at 13, 15, 17, and then twice at 18.

Despite two birdies, like his first of the day on No. 14 (Woods’ fifth hole of the day after starting on No. 10), Woods looked like a golfer on his way to a very short week at a track that used to be one of his favorites.

Sure, there were flashes of the old Tiger, like his stuffed iron shot to the par-3 16th that yielded his second birdie of his outgoing nine. But fanned drivers and 3-woods and bogeys and doubles pretty much defined Woods’ Memorial start. His card after that ugly first nine (via PGATour.com)

★★★

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