2024 Masters Tiger updates: Round 1 scores, highlights, how to ...

21 day ago
Masters 2024

AUGUSTA, GEORGIA - APRIL 11: Tiger Woods of the United States looks on from the first tee during the first round of the 2024 Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club on April 11, 2024 in Augusta, Georgia. (Photo by Andrew Redington/Getty Images)

Tiger Woods is underway at the Masters Tournament, seeking a 24th consecutive made cut at Augusta National, which would surpass Fred Couples and Gary Player for the all-time record.

Woods was originally scheduled to tee off at 1:24 p.m. ET Thursday, but his tee time was pushed back to 3:54 p.m. after play was delayed due to overnight storms that softened the course considerably. Woods, 48, is grouped for the first two rounds with Jason Day and Max Homa. He will likely complete his opening round on Friday morning; sunset in Augusta is slated for 7:56 p.m.

After undergoing ankle surgery following a WD during the third round of last year’s Masters, Woods returned to TOUR competition at The Genesis Invitational in February, where he opened in 1-over 72 but withdrew during the second round due to flu-like symptoms.

The Masters is Woods’ first start since withdrawing at The Genesis, and he said Tuesday that he still believes he can contend and win. That’s why he’s here, after all.

“If everything comes together, I think I can get one more,” said the five-time Masters winner on Tuesday.

The Masters' opening round airs from 3-7:30 p.m. Thursday on ESPN and Masters.com, with additional featured holes and featured groups coverage on Masters.com. Follow along to see how Woods’ opening round unfolds at Augusta National.

Hole 7 (par 4, 450 yards): Woods tugs a fairway metal just left of the fairway, the ball settling in the first cut but requiring a low punch to elude a dense grove of trees. He plays his 171-yard second shot accordingly, a low bullet that tracks toward the hole but can't clear a front greenside bunker.

Woods' bunker shot is a short-game master class, the ball landing some 10 feet short of the hole and releasing beautifully, leaving a 2-footer to save par. He has no trouble doing so.

Hole 6 (par 3, 192 yards): Woods takes an aggressive line with a mid-iron; the ball tracks toward the hole's left side and lands roughly 15 feet short-right of the hole, but it catches the slope and feeds back onto the green's front portion, leaving a cross-country birdie try up a tier from 42 feet.

In what could be either a misread or a mis-hit, Woods' birdie putt misses short and right of the hole, leaving a knee-knocker for par. He has no trouble, though, draining the 5-footer for an adventurous two-putt par.

Hole 5 (par 4, 495 yards): Woods pulls driver on the demanding par 4 and plays a feathery cut that splits the fairway's right-center portion. The five-time Masters winner hoists a mid-iron from 200 yards that lands softly on the green's proper level, offering a mid-range birdie try.

Woods' 16-foot birdie try has a good line but isn't struck hard enough, settling a couple feet short. He cleans up his par to remain level on the round.

Hole 4 (par 3, 177 yards): Woods flushes an iron on Augusta National's first par 3; similar to his third shot on the par-5 second, the ball flies too far, settling in the second cut just beyond the green. He faces a slippery downhill chip, the green sloping away, and bumps the ball into the fringe on a line some 20 feet left of the hole; the ball releases onto the green and rolls well past, leaving a 25-foot par attempt from the front portion of the green's back section.

Woods' par putt is well judged, but the right-to-left bender just misses on the hole's right edge. He taps in for his first bogey of the week.

Hole 3 (par 4, 350 yards): Woods settles in with the driver, playing a tight cut that eludes the short par 4's myriad fairway bunkers, the ball traveling 334 yards down the middle. From roughly 70 feet, he plays a bump-and-run second shot into the hill that releases just past the hole, leaving a 12-foot birdie try.

Woods can't convert the birdie, as he plays too much break on the left-to-right slider; the ball stays out on the left side. He taps in for a comfortable par, remaining in the Thursday red.

Hole 2 (par 5, 585 yards): Woods pulls driver but is unhappy with the swing immediately; he points to the left as the ball misses the fairway on the left side. The ball travels 319 yards, but it settles just inches from a tree's thick base, with 237 yards remaining to the hole. After some analysis and deliberation, he turns an iron upside-down and makes a left-handed swing, advancing the ball roughly 40 yards back into the fairway, enough to offer a clear angle for his third shot to the green.

Woods selects a 6-iron for his third shot from 190 yards; he stripes it but the ball flies too far, settling in the fairway cut beyond the green's back side. He plays a pitch-and-run with a mid-iron for his fourth, the ball not getting more than a few inches above surface level; it releases through the fringe and rolls to 5 feet. "Absolutely brilliant," said analyst Dottie Pepper. The slippery downhiller has some right-to-left movement, but he drips the par putt into the hole's left center with sublime pace. Crisis averted.

Hole 1 (par 4, 445 yards): Sporting a salmon shirt in his new Sun Day Red branding, Woods stripes a fairway metal with plenty of left-to-right movement, the ball starting down the left side but cutting back perfectly to the center of the fairway. He doesn't miss a beat on his second shot from 169 yards, striping a short iron to 8 feet. The patrons roar in approval.

Woods takes advantage of the early opportunity, as the right-to-left breaker curves into the center of the cup with perfect pace. Birdie to start. It's the first time since 1999 that he has carded birdie on his first hole of the Masters.

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