AUGUSTA, Ga. — The roar welled out of the farthest corner of Augusta National shortly before 2 p.m., the kind of seismic rumble that only one player can inspire. Unfortunately for Tiger Woods and the thousands following him, the birdie on hole No. 5 was the last good news of the day.
Woods crawled his way back to the clubhouse — not literally, but very close — with his worst-ever round at Augusta National. Woods recorded a 10-over 82 on the round to end the day at 11-over.
"I didn't have a very good warmup session, and I kept it going all day today," he said. "Just hit the ball in all the places that I know I shouldn't hit it.
"And I missed a lot of putts. Easy, makable putts. I missed a lot of them."
In 98 previous rounds at Augusta National, Woods’ highest prior score was 78, recorded in rounds 3 and 4 in 2022. Prior to that debacle, his highest recorded round was a 77, all the way back in 1995 as an amateur.
Woods has only scored in the 80s five times in his entire career. In 2015, he recorded his worst-ever score, an 85 in the third round of the Memorial, and his second-worst, an 82 in the second round of the Phoenix Open. Prior to Saturday, his worst rounds in majors were an 81 at the 2002 British Open and an 80 at the 2015 U.S. Open.
As Woods walked up the 18th, sweat pouring down the sides of his face, the assembled gallery stood and applauded. He nodded his thanks and touched his cap. One day earlier, he comfortably made the cut for a record-setting 24th time at Augusta National. In terms of successes, that’s about all he can take from this week.
"My team will get me ready," he said after his round, putting to bed the notion that he might withdraw. "It will be a long night and a long warmup session, but we'll be ready."
