Tiger Woods: I’m ready to ‘compete’ for a fifth Masters title

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The last time anyone saw Tiger Woods play golf in public, he played just 11 holes before his back hurt. Deactivated glutes.

Woods again played just 11 holes of golf on Monday at Augusta National Golf Club, but the reaction was much different. The 14-time major champion didn’t look like a hobbled old man with the chipping yips, but rather a healthy, four-time Masters winner with a legitimate chance to win a fifth green jacket.

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Multiple reports of Woods’ practice round reported an impressive display, especially considering he shot a career-worst 82 at the Phoenix Open and has looked absolutely lost around the greens since last December. Woods didn’t play out every shot, but The Telegraph’s James Corrigan guesstimated that Woods could have shot 30 for nine holes.

“It’s been a process, but I’m on the good side now,” Woods said after the round. “It’s progression. I felt like I had to get my game into a spot where I could compete to win a golf tournament and it’s finally there.”

Woods spent significant time hitting chips and pitch shots on the Augusta National practice range on Monday — Golf Channel counted 69 such shots — and looked proficient for the most part. That appears to have carried over onto the course.

“Chipping is fine. I wanted to test out some wedges out here, ” Woods said. “That was why I was chipping a little bit more. It came down to a couple of different bounce settings because it’s different from Florida. We figured the right one out. I felt good. It was nice to get out here.”

The former world No. 1 played the practice round with Mark O’Meara, the 1998 champion who also played practice rounds with Woods ahead of the 2010 Masters, when Woods made a return after revelations of marital infidelity. Woods miraculously finished T-4 that week.

Now the question is if Woods can maintain his confidence when the tournament starts. O’Meara believes Woods can do well.

“He’ll be nervous on Thursday. We all are,” O’Meara said, according to ESPN.com. “And under the gun it’s always a little bit different. But never underestimate Tiger Woods.”