PACIFIC PALISADES, Calif. — The sound was as unmistakable as it was unbelievable.
It was a sound you’re accustomed to hearing at a local muni, where public hackers wearing blue jeans and T-shirts are swinging and swatting golf balls all over the yard.
That sound was pure shank and it came off the 8-iron of Tiger Woods from the 18th fairway at Riviera Country Club in the opening round of the Genesis Invitational on Thursday.
Woods had just piped his drive up the right side of the fairway and suddenly his second shot was rattling around in the trees to the right side of the fairway, bouncing on the cart path and dribbling into a dodgy lie in the scruff where fans had been traipsing all day.
Woods was playing decently at the time, considering this was his first round in a full-field PGA Tour event since last year’s Masters, some 10 month ago, and he was even par.
When a reporter tiptoed around mentioning the dreaded “S-word,” asking Woods about the shot, he said, “Oh … I shanked it.’’
How did this happen to one of the best players the game has ever seen?
“My back was spasming the last couple holes and it was locking up,’’ the 48-year-old Woods, whose foundation hosts the tournament, said. “I came down and it didn’t move and I presented hosel first and shanked it.’’
He said it’s “definitely been a while’’ since he shanked a shot.
Now, Woods was facing the scariest shot in golf for his third — the swing after a shank — from trees.
“I had a small window there, 96 [yards to the] front, 127 total, and tried to hit a punch hook 8-iron after I just shanked an 8-iron,’’ Woods said. “I said, ‘All right, the next shot’s supposed to be the harder,’ and I pulled it off, which is good.’’
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Unfortunately, Woods failed to pull off the miracle par save, which would have put an exclamation point on his return, because he missed the 16-foot par putt that followed the nifty punch shot through the trees.
It ended in a 1-over par day for him and leaves him eight shots behind leader Patrick Cantlay, whose caddie, Joe LaCava, is Woods’ former caddie.
Cantlay, at 7-under after shooting 64, is followed by Aussies Jason Day and Cam Davis, and American Luke List — all of whom are 6-under. Jordan Spieth, Tom Hoge and Will Zalatoris, who’s making a comeback after back surgery, are all 5-under.
As for Woods, he described his round as “a lot of good and a lot of indifferent,’’ adding, “It was one or the other. I was either making birdies or bogeys and just never really got anything consistent going.’’
Woods, who played with good friends Justin Thomas and Gary Woodland, conceded that he was “definitely nervous’’ as he stood on the first tee Thursday morning.
“I care about how I play and certainly I was feeling the nerves starting out,’’ he said. “I got off to a good start birdieing the first [hole] and gave it right back up on the next two holes and made a couple more birdies. It was one of those days, just never really got anything consistently going and hopefully [Friday] I can clean it up.’’
Wood called jumping right into tournament golf after such a long layoff “impossible to prepare for.’’
“I rely so much on experience and having done this a long time, but still having the adrenaline dump in the system, the ball goes further, speed goes up, just the yardages are a little bit different than they are at home,’’ he said. “It’s just different and that’s just a part of playing competitive golf.’’
When he was asked what the rest of his schedule may be, whether he’ll be able to stick to the hope of one tournament a month and be able to play often enough to find a rhythm, Woods said, “I don’t know what that looks like. I’m hoping that’s the case, hoping that I play that much [once a month]. As far as the physical ups and downs, that’s just part of my body, that’s part of what it is. That’s all right, I accept it and accept the challenges.
“I’m going to be rusty and I have to do a better job at home prepping.’’
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