WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS, W.Va. — Through 15 holes Tiger Woods felt on rhythm and in command, and yet he was only 1-under.
Such a lackluster score didn’t feel justified, not with the Greenbrier’s Old White inviting birdies and Woods launching dialed-in tee shots. He told caddie Joe LaCava something better was in store as they walked the backstretch of Thursday’s opening round.
“I told Joey going down 7 we’re playing too well to just be 1 under par,” and Woods followed through with three consecutive birdies to close a 4-under 66.
Woods stuck his 150-yard approach within 3 feet on No. 7, then buried putts from 18 and 19 feet to close his best-scoring round since March 2014.
“Let’s get back to 3 (under) and a bonus was the 4,” he said. “We happened to just pull off a hat trick coming home.”
That means Woods is unlikely to be going home Friday as he did at the Greenbrier in 2011 and the U.S. Open two weeks ago. As the afternoon groupings played out under light showers, Woods remained tied for eighth with a large contingent.
“It was a pretty good day and I feel like I left a lot of pretty good opportunities out there too,” he said. “I hit the ball better than my score indicates.”
As Woods took questions, playing partners Scott Langley and Jonathan Byrd were zipping through their rounds, shooting 62 and 63 respectively. Brian Davis and Ryo Ishikawa posted 64s with the early groups.
“It’s going to be a bunched leaderboard come Sunday. Everyone’s going to go low,” Woods said. “The nature of the course right now, it’s soft, and the guys are going to go get it.”