SAN DIEGO — Tiger Woods had his lowest opening round of the year since 2011. It wasn’t enough to be among the leaders Thursday at the Farmers Insurance Open, but it was fine with him.
Coming off his record-tying 82nd victory in his last PGA Tour start three months ago in Japan, Woods handled the par 5s on the easier North Course at Torrey Pines and limited mistakes for a 3-under 69.
Sebastian Cappelen and Keegan Bradley had the low scores of the opening round, which was not the same as sharing the lead. Cappelen had eight birdies for a 66 on the South Course, which played about three shots tougher than the North, where Bradley shot his 66.
Rory McIlroy, who played in the group in front of Woods, was among those at 67. Jon Rahm, playing alongside Woods, was in a large group at 68.
Woods hasn’t broken 70 in his first round of the year since a 69 on the North at Torrey Pines in 2011. His health, his game and even his momentum are in much better shape now. His game wasn’t all that far off.
“It was nice to kind of keep the round going a little bit,” Woods said. “Overall, pleased to shoot something in the 60s today.”
It took a little time to get going. He left himself in a bad spot right of the green on the par-5 10th to start his round and failed to make birdie. His flop shot from 50 yards short of the green on the next hole came up short and into a bunker, leading to a bogey. He was even par at the turn on a course where low scores are expected.
Woods kept it simple, with a nifty wedge to short range on his 10th hole, a two-putt birdie from 18 feet on the par-5 fifth and an easy up-and-down for birdie on the final hole.
“I could probably, maybe could have gotten one or two more out of my round today,” Woods said. “But overall, I felt like it was a good start, especially going into the South Course. I don’t know what the guys did on the South Course in relation to the North, but I felt like the golf course was certainly gettable today.”
Bubba Watson had a 67 on the South, while three other players broke 70 on the South, which hosted the U.S. Open in 2008 and gets another U.S. Open next year.
Woods has won this event seven times, not including his 2008 U.S. Open title on this course and a Junior World Championship when he was a teenager. At stake this week is a chance to set the PGA Tour career victories record with No. 83 on the first course where his father took him to watch a PGA Tour event.
LPGA: Jessica Korda shot a 6-under 66 in high wind to take the first-round lead in the Gainbridge LPGA at Boca Rio, the tour’s first full-field event of the season and first official event in Boca Raton, Florida, in more than 30 years.
Korda birdied her final two holes, finishing with a 25-foot putt on the par-4 ninth. The 26-year-old Florida player had eight birdies – converting on all four par-5 holes – and two bogeys.
Tour rookies Yui Kawamoto of Japan and Patty Tavatanakit of Thailand were two strokes back, along with South Korea’s Sei Young Kim.
EUROPEAN TOUR: Thomas Pieters birdied four of his first six holes and overcame a mid-round blip to take the lead on Day 1 of the Dubai Desert Classic in the United Arab Emirates.
The Belgian player dropped three shots combined on the 10th and 11th holes, but recovered with three straight birdies to shoot 5-under 67 for a one-stroke lead over David Lipsky.
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