Tiger Woods finishes 72-hole week at Genesis with 73

Well he did it.

No, Tiger Woods didn’t win Sunday’s Genesis Invitational at Riviera Country Club. He didn’t even crack the top 40, finishing 2-73 to finish 1-1 under, double digits behind what will end up being the winning score.

“My winning streak continues here at Riv,” said Woods, who is still winless at the venue where he made his PGA Tour debut as a 16-year-old.

But what forests did Do? He ran four rounds of golf in as many days.

That was the big question earlier in the week as Woods admitted he hasn’t challenged his surgically repaired right leg as much this year. Prior to this week, Woods had not completed a 72-hole event since last year’s Masters. He made the cut at the PGA Championship last May before retiring after three rounds and missed the cut at The Open. Then plantar fasciitis in his right foot knocked him out of the Hero World Challenge.

Chamblee gives Tiger’s Genesis performance an A

Woods showed up at Riv with his right ankle being the main concern.

So how did he feel physically answering questions on Sunday afternoon?

“It was certainly a little bit harder than I probably wanted to admit,” Woods said.

As for play, Woods was unsurprisingly rusty, especially on the greens. He struggled with his speed all week and lamented a series of “silly mistakes”. On Sunday, Woods carded five bogeys; He did the same in the second round on Friday before cutting the number.

Still, there were moments highlighted by Woods’ eagle on Saturday’s par 5 opening where Woods almost sank his second shot for Albatros. At one point in that third round, Woods was in the top 20; he made a late bogey but still carded a 4-under-67, the second-best round of the day.

He provided a final highlight on Sunday on the par 3 16th when he hit his tee ball at 5 feet and rolled in the birdie putt.

“Overall, I felt like hitting the ball the way I hit it at home,” Woods said.

Later in his post-round interview, Woods described some of his recovery process between rounds.

“I was in the ice pretty much all night,” Woods explained. “It’s not fun, it’s very cold all the time. And then treatment, then muscle activating and going back and hopping in the cold again. The ebb and flow of it, it’s tough. It’s tough mentally, it’s tough physically. It’s just one of those things that’s part of being an athlete – yes we train, yes we push our bodies, but what’s probably more important is the recovery process.

“If you can recover, you can push even harder the next day.”

Complete scores of The Genesis Invitational

Woods is now getting a well-deserved break. For how long, however, remains to be seen.

Woods reiterated several times this week that he will only play the four majors — and maybe a few more — each year. With that in mind, it’s likely that Woods won’t play again until the Masters.

Not that Woods would confirm his plans.

“I’m sure you’ll see me somewhere,” Woods said with a smile. “I’m sure people will film me hitting balls at the medalist.

“Competitive? I don’t know.”

Source