TULSA, Okla. — Couple gamers battle on the golf class like Tiger Woods does.
And fight Woods did in Friday’s next round of the PGA Championship at Southern Hills, exactly where he spent the afternoon desperately battling to make the reduce and keep alive for the weekend.
Woods, in difficulty on his back again 9 soon after a double bogey on the 11th gap dropped him to 5-over and the improper facet of the slash line, rallied to shoot a 1-less than 69 Friday to get to 3-about for the event.
When it was more than, Woods, buoyed by his rally, was chatting like another person who even now thinks he can gain in the put exactly where he received the 2007 PGA — regardless of the fact he’s 12 photographs out of the guide.
“You cannot gain the match if you overlook the reduce,’’ Woods said. “I’ve received tournaments — not important championships — but I’ve gained tournaments on the slice variety. There’s a cause why you combat hard and you are in a position to give oneself a likelihood on the weekend. You just by no means know when you could get sizzling. I’ve received tournaments currently being on the cut variety.
“This weekend I’m going to have to go reduced. I’m hoping I can shoot a quantity like Bubba [Watson] did now [63] tomorrow. That’s where my brain is at suitable now. Hopefully I can write-up a great spherical and at the very least move up the board, get myself in just putting length on Sunday.
“I’m pretty far back again, but you just under no circumstances know. Key championships are challenging to gain. There is a mission, and which is to go in advance and gain this issue in some way.’’
It appeared that the par-3 11th was likely to be Woods’ undoing when he took the sloppy double. He airmailed the environmentally friendly very long and left, hit his 2nd shot about the other facet of the green into a bunker, splashed out to the green and two-putted.
But Woods rallied with two birdies and 6 consecutive 1-putt greens.
His very best will save came suitable immediately after the bogey. On 12, he was forced to make a 14-foot par-save putt to remain at 5-about, leaving himself with a need to-have birdie on the par-5 13th hole to inch back again into competition to engage in the weekend.
Woods striped a 336-yard push into the fairway and manufactured his 8-foot birdie putt on 13 to get back again to 4-more than.
Woods immediately put included strain on his putter on the par-3 14th when he skipped the eco-friendly and then left his chip shot 14 ft brief of the gap. Struggling with an additional will have to-make, he calmly poured in the par-help save putt to remain at 4-about and on the cutline.
On 15, Woods acquired himself into issues all over again. Soon after splitting the fairway with his tee shot, he experienced just 155 yards to the flag and overshot the green and still left himself small-sided in the back again bunker, needing an exquisite up-and-down to conserve par.
And which is precisely what he did, working with a deft smooth-handed touch to splash his sand shot to 3 ft from the gap and conserve still an additional par.
Woods then attacked the 521-garden par-4 16th gap, the 3rd most complicated on the program, with a 313-lawn push and a 209-yard tactic shot to within just four ft of the flag for birdie.
Throughout his opening spherical, Woods’ limp was much more pronounced, on the lookout like he was laboring and he mentioned he was in suffering afterward.
Rory McIlroy, who performed with Woods the past two times, marveled at Woods’ combat on Friday.
“I suggest, just unbelievable building the minimize at Augusta and earning the slice here,’’ McIlroy claimed. “I was joking with Joey [LaCava, Woods’ caddie] yesterday stating he could have appear back again and performed like Honda and Valspar, two of the flattest courses on Tour [and] it might have been a little bit less difficult for him, but he arrives to two of the toughest walks that we have. Just exceptionally resilient and mentally difficult.
“He’s the greatest professional. Searching at him [Thursday], if that would have been me, I would have been looking at pulling out and just likely property, but Tiger is different and he’s proved he’s diverse. It was just a monumental work.’’
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