Tiger Woods bemoans pace of play after 76

Tiger Woods cited the pace of play as one of the reasons for his first round struggles at the Farmers Insurance Open.

The 14-time major champion posted a four-over-par 76 on the South Course at Torrey Pines in his first full-field PGA Tour event for 17 months, hitting just four of 14 fairways (28%) and nine of 18 greens in regulation (50%).

It was weird waiting that much

And, in trying to explain his poor showing, Woods referenced the pace of play during the round, which took five hours and 20 minutes to complete.

“We were playing so much slower than I’m used to,” said Woods, who was playing alongside Jason Day and Dustin Johnson.

“It was weird waiting that much. I’m not used to doing that at home where I guess we’re kind of flying a little quicker than this. It was just a different rhythm.

I’m just trying to get used to this

“So much is different. Playing in slower conditions, it’s much softer than at home, it’s much cooler than at home – I’m just trying to get used to this.”

But despite his score, which sees down in T133, Woods was pleased with the way he battled.

“I fought my tail off out there,” he added. “It was nice to put together a round when I wasn’t hitting it that great early. I got through there and that’s one of the positives I’m going to take out of it.”