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For a moment there, it looked like it might actually happen.
Tiger Woods had one hand on the Claret Jug – a trophy he has held aloft on three previous occasions – at Carnoustie today only to let it slip.
Major No.15 will have to wait. Three dropped shots in two holes – the 11th and 12th – consigned the former 14-time major champion to a tie for sixth in this year’s Open Championship as Francesco Molinari became Italy’s first-ever major winner.
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“I’m a little ticked off at myself for sure,” Woods admitted afterwards. “I had a chance starting that back nine to do something, and I didn’t do it.”
Even so, he is determined to take the positives from his first Open appearance since 2015 and his best major finish since the 2013 Open at Murfield, where he again finished in a tie for sixth.
What a ride that was! Good to have you back @TigerWoods #TheOpen pic.twitter.com/brRUFfo8xi
— The Open (@TheOpen) July 22, 2018
“Today I did everything the way I thought I needed to do it to win the championship,” he said. “It was a blast. I was saying earlier that I need to try and keep it in perspective because, the beginning of the year, if they’d have said you’re playing The Open Championship, I would have said I’d be very lucky to do that.”
Woods added that he expects to talk to Serena Williams – whom he watched lose in the final of the women’s singles at Wimbledon just over a fortnight ago – about his experiences this week.
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“Serena and I are good friends,” he said. “I’m sure she’ll probably call me and talk to me about it because you’ve got to put things in perspective. She just had a baby and lost the Wimbledon finals. Just keep it in perspective, and the same thing with me. I know that it’s going to sting for a little bit here, but given where I was to where I’m at now, blessed.”
Tiger’s children, Sam and Charlie, met him as he left the 18th. Seeing them, he insisted, eased the pain of defeat somewhat.
“I told them I tried, and I said, ‘Hopefully you’re proud of your pops for trying as hard as I did’,” he said. “It’s pretty emotional because they gave me some pretty significant hugs there and squeezed.
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“I know that they know how much this championship means to me and how much it feels good to be back playing again. To me, it’s just so special to have them aware because I’ve won a lot of golf tournaments in my career, but they don’t remember any of them.
“The only thing they’ve seen is my struggles and the pain I was going through. Now they just want to go play soccer with me. So that’s — man, it’s just such a great feeling.”
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