The Masters: Tiger Woods has his best start at Augusta, but Paul Casey leads after round one
- The defending champion, vying for a record-tying sixth green jacket, rolls back the clock 19 months to the way he was playing in his drama-soaked fifth victory
The defending champion, vying for a record-tying sixth green jacket, rolled back the clock 19 months to the way he was playing in his drama-soaked fifth victory.
It was only Thursday, and he didn’t finish the day atop the leader board – Paul Casey did by shooting a seven-under-par 65 – but the 68 by Woods tied his best opening round in this storied tournament. Plus, for the first time, he had a bogey-free Thursday at Augusta National. He finished his day tied for fifth.
“I did everything well,” he said. “I drove it well, hit my irons well, putted well. ... The only thing I could say is that I wish I could have made a couple more putts.”
As noted by ESPN, Woods had his third-best opening round as a defending champion in a major. The only better rounds were at the 2000 PGA Championship (eight-under) and 2006 British Open (five-under) – and he went on to win both.