Tiger Woods’ round at the Genesis Invitational on Thursday ended with a shank.
Getty Images/Michael Owens
PACIFIC PALISADES, Calif. — If you’ve ever followed Tiger Woods through 18 holes of golf, it’s hard not to notice the noise. Along with nearly all of his competitors, the sound that follows Woods during tournament rounds is deafening. But more importantly, they are predictable.
Tiger noise is as reliable as anything in professional golf, a symphony of swells and silences so stylized that it has become a kind of atomic clock for avid golf journalists. It’s a sign that things are going well in Tigerland, even if observers say otherwise. Obstructed by trees and the turnstiles of overzealous TV spotters (as often happens when you’re nervous in anticipation of a herd of tigers). When the tiger noise does not occur as expected, it acts like a sound emitter for an informed listener, resulting in: Look for the source of the confusion with a worried look and bat ears.
You didn’t need to train your ears to know that the noise that accompanied Woods’ No. 18 second shot Thursday afternoon at the Genesis Invitational was unusual. An eerie silence followed the boring game, with thousands of spectators packed into the 18th amphitheater and even a below-average approach likely to erupt into loud cheers. knock The nature of the contact has become clear.
Even more revealing were the images that added to the silence. By the time Woods reached the follow-through of his swing, he had already placed the club in disgust on the grass, his eyes searching for the ball’s location in an area perpendicular to the target line.
The reason for the turmoil, as you may already know, was Woods’ recent life shank. The hosel rocket exploded from the club head at an almost 90-degree angle, sending it flying into the trees. Officially, Woods’ second shot traveled 71 yards, according to ShotLink, but that number was helped by his ball rolling off Yokoyama’s lie before reaching its final resting place. You should be careful.
To put it generously, the seconds following the shank were awkward. At least a few thousand spectators said little and stared at the holes in the soles of their shoes, while one of the greatest golfers of a generation acquired a painful temperament of hemophobia at a blood drive. As Woods took a moment to collect himself, the horde silently shuffled into position behind him. The third The shot was a slab of untouched wilderness on the side of the hole.
Finally, after what felt like a moment, Justin Thomas stuck his approach to the putting surface and mercifully gave the crowd an excuse to return to polite applause. His third member of the group, Gary Woodland, also followed suit, and Gallery regained some of its mojo.
Eventually, Woods and new caddy Lance Bennett arrived at the ball. A short conversation ensued, and after a few practice swings, Woods made a remarkable recovery. He hit a “punch-hooked 8-iron” through the trees scorching the fairway, and it landed on the putting surface with an incredibly gentle touch. After a two-putt and a handshake, he made a mostly innocuous but frustrating bogey, and the crowd returned to its usual silence.
The shank will be the story of Tiger’s day Thursday at Genesis, the first round back on the PGA Tour for the 2024 season. Most of what had happened up until then had been ordinary behavior from the 48-year-old, playing in his first tournament in months. Some impressive birdies, a few ugly bogeys, and more than enough good results to make up for the bad. He finished tied for 49th place in the 70-player field at 1 over, eight shots back of Patrick Cantlay’s mark.
If you arrived at Genesis on Thursday expecting to see signs of life in Woods’ first round of the year, you should have gone away encouraged. His swing clearly had more momentum than it had in any practice round that week, and his putter had some sharp moments. Most importantly, he navigated 18 holes on his feet with no obvious signs of pain. The tiger noise that followed most of his rounds was close to the usual frequency of ecstasy and agony, but that’s good news considering it was the best time of year since a full-fledged tournament round. It felt like.
And for what it’s worth, golf I’m not criticizing that unfortunate development on the 18th fairway. Shanks are human, rare for a player of Woods’ stature, and the kinds of mistakes reminiscent of the golfing experience are common. He seemed to realize this, too, through his shy smile at the post-round press conference.
“oh, absolutely,” he said. “I shanked it.”
However, it was not without concern. The cause for concern in his shins was his bulky back, he later admitted.
“My back cramped up on the last few holes and I was stiff,” he said. This reflects the same injury concerns that have plagued his career at least a dozen times over the past decade. “It came down and didn’t move, so I took out the hosel and shanked it first.”
After the final entrance, there was another confusion among the troops, and another long silence passed through to the watching audience. This time, the golf reporters who were there didn’t know what to do.
But then a question arose, and another question arose, and the tiger noise returned to its typical rattle and hum.
It’s always like this on weeks like this, and I feel strangely relieved.
