Tiger Woods Rusty at Northern Trust, 13 Shots Back After Round One

Posted on: August 9, 2019, 01:00h. 

Last updated on: August 9, 2019, 01:59h.

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Update: Woods has withdrawn from The Northern Trust due to an injury. 

Tiger Woods has played just 10 rounds of competitive golf since the beginning of June, and his 11th round inside the ropes was one he’ll want to soon forget.

Tiger Woods golf odds
Tiger Woods’ golf game Thursday gave him plenty to grimace about. (Image: Kevin Cox/Getty)

The 15-time major winner labored around Liberty National Golf Club during the first round of The Northern Trust and start of the FedEx Cup Playoffs. He made five bogeys and a double against three birdies, finishing at four-over 75. Woods entered the week at 30/1 to win.

I just didn’t play well,” Woods said afterwards. “Just one of those things where I just didn’t hit any good shots and didn’t make any putts. Other than that, added up to a round that broke 80.”

“It just feels frustrating to shoot anything high,” Woods added. “I knew today, with an early tee time, we had the perfect greens and had to go out there and shoot something under par and get it going. I went the other way with it.”

Odds Recap

Woods trails leader Troy Merritt by an astonishing 13 shots after just 18 holes of play. The leader shot a nine-under 62 to take a one-shot lead into Friday. Merritt was at 250/1 to win The Northern Trust. A $100 ticket slip on those odds and a victory from the 33-year-old would net $25,000.

Dustin Johnson trails the leader by a shot. The game’s No. 2 golfer was at 16/1 to win, with every $100 wagered netting $1,600. World No. 1 Brooks Koepka entered as the favorite at 10/1, but struggled – by his standards – on Thursday to a one-under 70, which puts him in a tie for 63rd.

Kevin Kisner (100/1) and Jon Rahm (16/1) are in a tie for third after shooting rounds of 64. At six-under, 65 includes Rory McIlroy (12/1), Tony Finau (40/1), and Webb Simpson (25/1).

Severe longshot Max Homa sits four shots back at five-under-par. His Las Vegas odds as of last night were 500/1. If he finds a way to win come Sunday, anyone who wagered as little as $10 on him would collect $5,000.

The struggling Jordan Spieth teed off Thursday at 50/1. He shot 67. Phil Mickelson was even longer at 150/1, and Lefty warranted the line by shooting 72.

Looking Ahead

The top 70 and ties will advance to the weekend. Woods will need to play well today to get inside the cut line. If he doesn’t, he’ll have a short week and miss his second consecutive cut – the last coming at The Open in July, where he shot rounds of 78-70.

Even if Tiger doesn’t play the weekend, Woods will remain inside the top 70 to qualify for next week’s BMW Championship at Medina outside Chicago. Woods will need to be in the top 30 to move on to the season-ending Tour Championship, where the winner will take home a $15 million bonus, and a $60 million overall purse will be up for grabs.