Tiger Woods will return to the golf course for his first PGA Tour event since the Masters.
Genesis invitation Thursday is a holiday from Riviera Country Club In Pacific Palisades, California, the woods are a familiar place, but not a hit. In fact, it's the course he's played without a win as a pro (12 matches).
The 15-time major winner underwent ankle surgery in April and withdrew from the Masters during the third round due to plantar fasciitis in his foot. Woods played in the Hero World Challenge in December and tied for 18th.
Woods will provide updates from the first round on USA TODAY Sports Riviera.
Woods salvages par on the 12th
There were tense moments on the challenging 12th hole for Woods. After entering the hole hitting six of nine fairways, Woods sent his tee shot right of the fairway into the line of spectators. He wasn't alone in the wilderness, Justin Thomas also left the tee. Under the watchful eye of a cellphone-holding gallery, Woods sent his second shot into the bunker but recovered to take his third shot onto the green. Woods misses his putt for birdie but taps in for birdie.
Woods returns to even par on the 11th
Woods birdied the 11th hole at Riviera to get back to even par. After hitting the fairway off the tee, Woods deposited his second shot to the left of the fairway among the crowd of spectators. His third shot hit the edge of the rough rather than the edge of the green and missed the mark. Woods coolly sinks the putt from the edges of the green to get back under par.
Woods finds the bunker on the 10th, returning to even par after a bogey
Tiger found immediate trouble on his second nine starts. On the 10th, his tee shot went over the green into the back left greenside bunker. He got out of trouble and returned to the green, leaving himself with an eight-foot putt for par, but he missed and left the hole.
Tiger finished ninth at 1-under, tied for 18th
Ending his game on the front nine, Woods' tee shot on another par 4 hit the left fairway, allowing him to get 164 yards to try to score another birdie. A four-footer on his third shot proved true as he settled for par and -1 after the first nine holes.
Patrick Cantley, Jordan Spieth and Will Zalatoris are tied for the 5-under lead.
No. On 8, Woods hit the tee to his left, landed right on the 436-yard hole and hit the green from the second rough. He putt 17 feet for birdie. He missed the birdie putt but knocked in an easy two-foot shot for par.
Setting up another golden opportunity for Tiger to make waves on the leaderboard, the no. Hits the fairway on 7. His second shot left him 40 feet from the cup. Later, his five-foot knock was saved.
No. In 6th the tiger is equivalent to the bird
No. On the 6th, with another chance at third, Woods drove his tee shot onto the green and continued his consistent iron play, landing 14 feet from the hole. He returned to par after a birdie putt.
Tiger's tee shot no. 5 got him off to another great start, using the three wood to hit the right fairway 152 yards from the hole. He left his second shot eight feet from the cup and had a chance to get back to par. But his putter failed as he overshot the hole, knocking him from two shots to one par.
Tiger birdies no. 4, returning after two straight bogeys
No. 4 is a 232-yard par 3 and Woods' tee shot was excellent, landing on the green 15 feet from the hole as he tries to bounce back after two straight bogeys. He taps easily to return to birdie par.
Tiger Woods bogeys hole no. 2 and 3, sitting at 1-over
At 448-yards, par 4 no. On the 3rd, Tiger's tee shot went right, landed rough on the golf cart fairway, and his second shot was no better, as he planned to the right front of the greenside bunker. . The third shot from the bunker landed 6 feet from the hole, but he missed the putt badly and had to chip from 3 feet, his second straight on the hole.
So far, Tiger has been driving the ball well, hitting the middle of the fairway off the tee on No. 2, leaving him 174 yards to hole out on the 480-yard par 4. The second shot hit the right side of the fairway and he tried to save 50 yards. His third shot over the hole still landed on the green 15 feet from the cup, but that good start led to No. Finished with a bogey at 2, putting him in even par.
Tiger Woods tees off, birdies the first hole
Woods is played by Justin Thomas and Gary Woodland. Hole no. On the 1st, 498-yard par 5, Woods' tee shot went about 300 yards to the right, slightly off the fairway. He used a 5-wood on the second shot and left the third shot three feet from the green for a great birdie chance. Woods taps in for birdie.
Woods is sporting his new threads, the Sun Day Reds, after announcing his split with Nike last month. Woods wears a black shirt with a white sweater and a black cap with the new Tiger logo. The logo features 15 stripes, one for Woods' 15 major victories. He is also introducing a new golf ball called the 2024 Bridgestone Tour B X.
What is Tiger Woods' tee time for the Genesis Invitational?
Tiger Woods heads into a group with Justin Thomas and Cary Woodland on Thursday at 12:25 p.m. ET.
The group's Friday tee time is 2:54 pm ET.
How to watch Tiger Woods at the 2024 Genesis Invitational on TV?
The Genesis Invitational will be televised all weekend on the Golf Channel and CBS.
- Thursday: Golf Channel from 4pm to 8pm ET
- Friday: Golf Channel from 4pm to 8pm ET
- Saturday: Golf Channel from 1 to 3 pm ET, CBS from 3 pm ET to 7 pm ET
- Sunday: Golf Channel from 1 to 3 pm ET, CBS from 3 pm ET to 6:30 pm ET
