“Tiger Woods has lost the fear factor” – Jason Day

Only the top 125 players will make it to The Barclays, the first playoff event, which means he probably needs a victory in his first visit here. If not, then I’ve got a big break.

Now ranked No. 286 in the world, Woods is playing Wyndham for the first time as a last gasp attempt to make the FedEx Cup play-offs next week.

Just before 8 a.m. (ET) he set the tone, igniting the gallery, and even himself, with a bold flop shot that bounced twice and trickled into the hole for an unlikely birdie at his first hole (No. 10).

Some fans say they hope the course here will be a good luck charm for Woods this week. “It was cool to see“.

His round began with a birdie the hard way – he missed the green on this approach, but holed out a flop shot to get himself below par early.

“I hit it good enough (this week) to be where I needed to be, but I putted bad”, Woods said. “I was getting into the flow of the round”.

Being aggressive seemed to be the order of the day for Woods.

The trouble is, his agent, Mark Steinberg, later said Woods was merely complying with the Friday entry deadline and will decide in the next few days whether he’ll actually play in the Wyndham.

Woods features in the morning marquee group alongside Brooks Koepka and Hideki Matsuyama, with that three-ball available live from 12.50pm via the red button on Sky Sports 4. Those are the type golf courses that fit, or British Open. When I heard that Tiger was playing, not only was I excited for myself but I was excited, you know, just for the Triad, for everyone whoever gets an opportunity to see someone of his magnitude.

“Theres so much to play for, ” said Webb Simpson, the 2011 victor whos safely at No. 49 on the points list.

“It’s still the same today as it was when I was 18, but now I have some other players, two guys in particular (Spieth and McIlroy) who are playing phenomenal golf, ahead of me”.

Woods now sits 187th in the FedEx Cup standings, and to qualify for the playoffs, he will need a win or second place finish. But Villegas won’t need to win or finish in the top 25 to continue his hunt for the FedExCup.

The PGA Tour’s Wyndham Championship, formerly known as the Greater Greensboro Open, has been an annual birdie-fest since Sam Snead won the inaugural event in 1938.

Day, who went on to win the US PGA, considers Woods a friend, but admits the 39-year-old has a huge mountain to climb to regain the fear factor that helped him become the greatest golfer on the planet. I haven’t put together ball-striking and putting. “Any borderline shot (at Whistling Straits) I never got away with it, and that’s the way it goes”. His ability to attack the pin will be on display especially if weather becomes a factor.

It’s still early in Woods’ 2014-15 walk-off, still plenty of birdies that will have to be made, but for one day, for one round things went his way.