#Tiger Woods ‘back’ to normal after solid third round at Memorial
“#Tiger Woods ‘back’ to normal after solid third round at Memorial”
His result in the third round of the Memorial reflected Woods’ balky back feeling better, as he shot a 1-under 71 — five shots better than the 76 he posted on Friday, which nearly caused him to miss the cut for the first time in 18 career Memorial starts.
Woods, who is 14 shots behind leader Jon Rahm, said he felt “a lot’’ better.
“I was moving better [Saturday] and felt like I did the first day [when he shot 71], and consequently I could make the passes at the golf ball like I did the first day,’’ he said. “Unfortunately, I didn’t make any putts [Saturday]. Hopefully I can make a few more [Sunday]. Overall, I felt like I played well, controlled the ball well.’’
After hitting just 5 of 14 fairways Friday, Woods hit 8 of 14 on Saturday. For the week, he’s hit 21 of 42.
Woods said he was “absolutely’’ relieved to survive the cut line Friday “to get a couple more rounds in me competitively.’’
After not having played tournament golf in five months before this week, dating back to his last-place finish at the Genesis Invitational in February, Woods was asked what he’s learned about where his game is through 54 holes.
“I think that getting back into the flow and competing again and playing at this level, I hadn’t done that in a while,’’ he said. “Playing at home and playing out here is so very different, and making sure that I stay sharp and don’t make any silly mistakes and dump the ball in the wrong spots or give myself bad angles, that’s one of the things about playing competitive golf that’s very different from playing at home.’’
Justin Thomas’ caddie, Jimmy Johnson, was carted off the golf course on the 13th hole Saturday when he felt dizzy, presumably from the 90-degree heat. Thomas’ father, Mike, who was following him, took over as his caddie, and Thomas proceeded to bogey the 15th hole, double the 16th and bogey the 17th before carding a birdie on his final hole.
“Jimmy just wasn’t feeling well,’’ Thomas said. “He was feeling dizzy. I told him on 12 that if he needed to leave, he needed to leave.’’
Thomas. shot 75 with a 40 on the back nine and is even for the week. He said the “adjustment’’ to his dad on the back “was fine,’’ but added, “It sucks because I really was playing well. The course is very difficult, and I just made a bad double and had a rough finish.
“I didn’t make those bogeys because my dad was caddying. It was just poor execution. In a couple weeks or one day, nobody will remember it. But right now, yeah, it’s a bummer.’’
Three players — Harris English, Dylan Frittelli and Denny McCarthy — who recently tested positive for COVID-19 but are asymptomatic, played as singles on Saturday. McCarthy said he tested negative on Saturday but English and Frittelli continued to test positive, so they’ll play as singles on Sunday.
“Obviously, it was pretty odd going out as a onesome,’’ McCarthy said. “It’s been a weird couple weeks, but obviously glad to hear the news [of his negative test]. Glad to get back to a somewhat normal atmosphere in this crazy time.
“It’s been tough [with] guys not really wanting to be around me, not being able to be in the locker room, dining area, not being able to sit with guys, just kind of being by myself. I’m not really going anywhere in public, getting a lot of takeout, getting food from here and bringing it back to my hotel, so it’s been a little lonely.’’
English said the situation makes him “kind of feel like an outcast,’’ adding, “Nobody really wants to get close to you or whatnot. I understand it. This virus is still so new and I’m about three weeks out of a positive test in Detroit, so I feel like I’ve fully recovered.’’
It wasn’t long ago when it looked like Brooks Koepka wasn’t going to lose a golf tournament ever again. His dominance, however, has waned to the point where he looks like just another PGA Tour player searching for his game right now. Much of that is the result of a knee injury that hampered him earlier in the season.
Koepka, playing alongside Woods in Saturday’s third round, shot a 1-over 73 and is 3-over for the week.
After missing the cut in last week’s Workday Charity Open at Muirfield, Koepka added the Memorial to his schedule because he’s desperately trying to gain enough points to qualify for the FedExCup Playoffs. It looks like he’ll play five consecutive tournaments entering next month’s PGA Championship, the first major championship of the season.
“You’ve got to play your way into it,’’ Koepka said. “When you don’t have the results you want, you’ve got to go out here and find it. You’ve got to work the put in, put the reps in and it will show eventually.’’
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