Woods singled out three shots as a few reminders of his singular talent: A four-iron approach from 220 yards (200 metres) into the wind and a five-wood from 240-50 to reach the greens of two par-fives, along with a striped seven-iron on a 216-yard par-three.
“They came off exactly how I wanted to,” he said.
Mackay called the four-iron, on the third hole, “a shot a guy playing his best golf on the PGA Tour would hit”.
Those moments inevitably led to speculation about Woods’ future from everyone other than himself.
“I don’t have it,” he told reporters. “You know that. I don’t have the game or the speed or any of that. I’m just starting to get back into it.”
Thomas, a 14-time winner who has become close with Woods, a fellow Jupiter resident, said his friend still has all the shots. Harnessing them during the course of four days in tournament conditions might be a tall order.
“He’s not that far away,” Thomas said. “But in terms of being able to compete and walk 72 holes multiple weeks in a row, yeah, that’s a different story — and he’s the only one that can answer that.”
Justin Thomas, left, and Tiger Woods, right, on the 18th hole during the first round of the PNC Championship. Credit:Getty Images
With his 46th birthday on December 30 and a long road to recovery still ahead, Woods is just happy to be walking with a slight limp and swinging a golf club with some decent speed.
On the 11th hole, Woods caught a drive that went more than 300 yards (274 metres). More often, he was catching a ride in his golf cart with caddie Joe LaCava in the passenger’s seat.
Whenever possible, the Woods pairing played Charlie’s drive, aided by the fact he could play up a tee box.
“I didn’t have to hit as many [drives],” Woods said. “Save me for the short shots and I can still hit short irons and I can still putt. That has not left me. The speed and some of the shots, the longer stuff has.”
But the PNC Championship was more about family and fun than the start of a comeback.
The ages range from 12-year-old Charlie, a junior golfer shooting tournament scores in the mid-70s to mid-80s, to 86-year-old Hall of Famer Gary Player, a nine-time major champion.
“It was just a blast,” Woods said.
‘I don’t have it’: Woods downplays recovery during father-son challenge
Source: Philippines Alive
