Tiger Woods may have played his final round of competition at The Open on the Old Course.
The three-time Open champion, who won two of those titles at St Andrews, shot 3-over-75 in the second round on Friday and finished the day with a 9-over aggregate. He is not expected to make the cut and play the final two rounds over the weekend.
The crowd seemed to feel it too, giving him a rousing send-off as he headed up the 18th fairway.
Ahead of this year’s tournament, Woods called the Old Course “historic” and his “favorite”. In 2000 and 2005 he won the Claret Jug at St Andrews.
But this year his struggles began on the very first hole when he sent his second shot into the Swilcan Burn. He double bogeyed and ended the day 6 to 78.
Perhaps it was too much to expect that Woods would compete this week despite being one of the greatest players to pick up a golf club.
After all, he’s playing on a right leg that was put together after a car accident in February 2021. It’s only his third event of 2022 – all have been major championships – and the first in almost two months.
Woods, 46, said this week he has no idea how long he can physically compete at the highest level because of his ailing body. That meant he couldn’t pass up the opportunity to play St Andrews, perhaps one last time on the stage where he won two of his three British Open titles.
Now his run appears to be over before the final two rounds of the tournament.
Reporting by The Associated Press.
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