Opinion & Analysis

Master instructor Dennis Clark analyzes Tiger’s first round at the Hero

Published

9 years ago

Nov 30, 2017

“For me, I thought I did great,” Tiger Woods said in assessing his opening-round 69 at the Hero World Challenge. Woods hit 7-of-13 fairways, 11-of-18 greens and took 27 putts while making five birdies against two bogeys.

But what does a PGA Master Professional and distinguished instructor think?

Fortunately, we have one of those on staff. Our Dennis Clark weighed in on the (mostly) ups and (few) downs of Woods five-birdie effort.

What are your impressions of Tiger Woods’ full swing?

DC: His speed is clearly back, and his motion is as free as it has been for a long time. Woods’ angle of attack looks shallower, and the swing has more arc. The big difference is this: When he can really turn, his swing gets more shape. The “straight-back, up-and-under block” is his killer move, and I think it got worse with injury.

What did you think about his short game, we saw him stub a couple of pitches out there…

DC: As far as his short game, he picked a tough course to come back on. Make no mistake, he has suffered from short game yips the last few years. The lies out there seem really tight, which will magnify any early-release yips. But that all comes down to confidence: yips are in the mind.

I know something Tiger said post round struck you…

DC: Yes. The putt he had on No.8. He said, “I had this putt last year and I remembered it doesn’t break a lot late, so i played it a little tighter.” Some day we’ll look back — like we did with [Bobby] Jones and [Ben] Hogan — and see that the strength of his focus and mind played a big part in his success.

—

Here are a few highlights from Woods’ opening-round 69, courtesy of the PGA Tour on Twitter.

260 yards. 2-iron.

Eagle putt coming up for @TigerWoods.#QuickHits pic.twitter.com/L0WOV5Z6Ls

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) November 30, 2017

Back-to-back birdies. ???? ????@TigerWoods is one shot off the lead at the Hero World Challenge.#QuickHits pic.twitter.com/4HSBUi7E0M

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) November 30, 2017

"For me, I thought I did great."@TigerWoods breaks down his first competitive round back in 10 months. pic.twitter.com/18n8WFHbLR

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) November 30, 2017

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Ben Alberstadt

Ben Alberstadt is the Editor-in-Chief at GolfWRX, where he’s led editorial direction and gear coverage since 2018. He first joined the site as a freelance writer in 2012 after years spent working in pro shops and bag rooms at both public and private golf courses, experiences that laid the foundation for his deep knowledge of equipment and all facets of this maddening game. Based in Philadelphia, Ben’s byline has also appeared on PGATour.com, Bleacher Report...and across numerous PGA DFS and fantasy golf platforms. Off the course, Ben is a committed cat rescuer and, of course, a passionate Philadelphia sports fan. Follow him on Instagram @benalberstadt.

4 Comments

James

Dec 1, 2017 at 11:50 am

Prior to the first ‘competition’ round, all of the most recent videos of tiger appeared to show a (slightly) shorter – and more controlled – backswing. This seemed more reminiscent of his swing as a younger man.

If you watch any compilation video of tigers swing, his backswing steadily increases over time from 1990s > 2016.

In round one, the shorter backswing seemed to be gone…. perhaps subconsciously going back to a more familiar/ingrained/old tempo.

Reply Report comment
Jack Nash

Dec 1, 2017 at 10:59 am

Still chunked wedges. Why not more bounce against the grain? If you’re using 8 why not 10 Deg? It would go easier against the grain.

Reply Report comment
dat

Nov 30, 2017 at 9:16 pm

what an original comment…

Reply Report comment
coops

Nov 30, 2017 at 9:06 pm

7 of 3 fairways…. wow, superhuman.

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Opinion & Analysis

AVL: My U.S. Amateur local qualifying experience

Published

6 days ago

Jun 5, 2026

Andrew Von Lossow

This past Monday, I played in the U.S. Amateur local qualifier at Rock Creek Country Club in Portland, Oregon. A full tee sheet from 7:30 a.m. to 1:55 p.m., the top 11 scores would make it to the U.S. Amateur final qualifying.

I teed off at 10:48 a.m.. With the 7:30 am tee time, you can get a feel for the leaders’ pace, and they were off and running on the challenging setup at Rock Creek.

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Getting to the highlight of the round on the par five 17th, a drive up the left side and 212 yards left to the front hole location. I took out a 5-iron with plans of middle of the green. The ball ended up 8 feet left of the hole, pin high. A slight downhill putt dropped in for an eagle 3 on the 17th. With the cut line looking to be anywhere from -2 to even par. This was the boost I had been waiting for all day.

With making par from the trees on 18, it was time to wait for a potential playoff with a posted score of one under par 71.

Three hours later, it was playoff time. 8 players for 6 spots. I made par on the playoff hole, which was good enough to advance to the U.S. Amateur final qualifying in July. USGA qualifiers sure deliver on all of the emotions in golf!

Club Junkie

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1 week ago

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2 weeks ago

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