LOS ANGELES – Well, that didn’t exactly go as planned. Tiger Woods began the early, chilly morning within five shots of the lead. Five hours later he shot 73, was well off the lead and for a brief moment was sitting dangerously close to the cut line.
Here are some thoughts from a mediocre day at Riviera Country Club during the second round of the Genesis Invitational.
- After birdie to start the day on the 10th hole, a nasty double bogey jumped up and bit Tiger on the 15th hole. From only 144 yards out, Tiger hit a horrendous approach. Basically, fat chunked it. It ended in a fried-egg lie in a bunker short of the green. From there, he hit it over the back of the green, chipped to 6 feet and missed the bogey putt. Ouch. It set the tone and Tiger found no momentum the rest of the round.
- Tiger did birdie No. 17 and then No. 1, both par 5s, but those were expected.
- From Nos. 3-6, Tiger made three bogeys. Yes, three bogeys in a four-hole stretch. He was 131 yards out on 3, well short of the green on the par-3 fourth and then missed a 7-footer to three putt from 42 feet on the par-3 sixth hole. Suddenly he went from contending to flirting with the cut line.
- Tiger hit nine of 14 fairways, eight of 18 greens and had 27 putts. The putting number is deceiving because several that do not count toward this statistic were mere inches into the rough.
Highlights from Tiger Woods’ second round of the Genesis Invitational on Friday at Riviera Country Club.
- By my estimate, six of the 10 greens missed were from no longer than 150 yards, so with mostly wedges and 9-irons in his hands. Un-Tiger-like.
- Tiger’s rounds since the start of the 2019-20 season: 64, 64, 66, 67, 72, 66, 67, 69, 69, 71, 69, 70, 69 and now 73. So, yes, this was the worst round of his season.
- Tiger won’t tee it up next week at the WGC-Mexico Championship. He’s declared how much he’d love to make the American team for the Olympics in Toyko later this summer. But despite a chance to pick up some free world ranking points and some free money, Woods is opting for rest after pulling double duty at Riviera.