Woods opens Wyndham with best round in 2 years

He shot a 6-under-par 64 in the first round of the Wyndham Championship in Greensboro, N.C., his lowest score in more than two years.

Woods wasn’t the leader, unless you’re talking about the head count in his large gallery at Sedgefield Country Club.

Needing to win or finish alone in second in order to qualify for the FedEx playoffs, Woods, who is making his first appearance at the Greensboro event, found his feet after months of toil.

Woods, who is ranked No. 286 in the world and No. 187 in the FedExCup standings (the top 125 get in), started his inward nine with another birdie on the first hole and followed up with back-to-back birdies on 4 and 5.

Erik Compton wonders if he should start drinking more often after firing an eight-under-par 62 to grab a three-way share of the first round lead at the Wyndham Championship on Thursday. Woods said he had waited to see how his weary frame had reacted to the rigors of last week’s PGA disappointment.

He said: “I think the majority of the players were afraid of him and he had that aura about him”.

Each effort appeared to be a huge step forward from a miserable start to his season, which included two missed cuts and a withdrawal in his first six tournaments.

He says he had “a blast” playing a pro-am round Wednesday with NBA All-Star Chris Paul. After a rough patch earlier in the year, Kaymer seems to be playing some of his best golf of the year. The length of the course is definitely suited to Woods, and many expected him to have a strong showing this weekend.

“I went for the shot, and instead of playing something more conservative, the greens were hard and fast, and I wanted to play something long”, Woods said.

Coming to a small-town tournament that appreciates his presence and offers an old-style course not necessarily conducive to the demands of today’s big-time tournament golf scene is something that Woods welcomes.

Cook received a sponsor’s invitation for the Wyndham Championship, but he is only 159th on the money list with $519,288 in earnings this season.

“They were both solid today”, he said. “The Tiger factor is still very real”, Brazil said.

Former United States Ryder Cup captain Azinger also weighed in on the ongoing woes of Woods saying he “continues to go in the wrong direction” with his focus on the physical rather than the mental.