Tiger Woods has sent golf fans into a frenzy after producing a birdie on his first hole in a PGA Tour event in 884 days, before finishing two-under in stunning scenes. The 47-year-old made his long-awaited return to the PGA Tour on Thursday, teeing off at the Genesis Invitational at Riviera Country Club.
The 15-time major champion hadn’t played an official PGA Tour event since suffering significant injuries in a car accident in 2021. However he made his triumphant return on Thursday – and started off with a bang.
Woods produced a brilliant chip onto the green and nailed his birdie putt to go -1 with a four on the par-5. Unfortunately he produced a bogey not long after that sent him back to even-par, but golf fans were still delighted with the way the American champion started.
One TV commentator described Woods’ birdie as ‘extraordinary’ considering it was the first hole he’d played at an official PGA Tour event in 884 days. The golf icon then got back into the red with another birdie on the 8th hole, before falling back to one-over with a couple of bogeys on the back nine.
But in extraordinary scenes, Woods produced three-consecutive birdies on the 16th, 17th and 18th to finish at -2 for the first round. The incredible finish sent the golf world into meltdown.
