Tiger Woods finds the water on the opening hole of the Open

Tiger Woods endures a NIGHTMARE start at The Open… as he finds the water on the opening hole before going on to post a double bogey at St Andrews

• Tiger Woods teed off at the Open on Thursday afternoon at St Andrews
• His tee shot wasn’t an issue, but he then found the water with his approach shot
• He struggled to recover from that error and went on to post a double bogey 

Tiger Woods made a horror start to the 150th Open as he found the water on the opening hole.

Making his first professional appearance since pulling out of the PGA Championship after the third round in May, the 15-time champion would have been hoping for a fast start.

However, having safely found the first fairway, his approach shot plunged into the Swilcan Burn.

Tiger Woods was not happy as he saw his second shot of the day find the water

Woods went on to post a double bogey on the opening hole of the Open Championship

After a penalty drop, Woods hit a good chip to around three feet, but the bogey putt was tugged left and did not even touch the hole.

The 46-year-old tapped in for a dispiriting double-bogey six in a nightmare start to his bid for a third Open title on the Old Course after previous wins in 2000 and 2005.  

Woods did exactly the same on his last trip to St Andrews on the opening hole. On that occasion he managed to rescue a bogey, but went one shot worse this time around.

He became the first player of the day to go two over par on the opening hole, and he is already facing an uphill task to get back into contention given the low scores that have already been carded.

Fellow American Cameron Young is the current clubhouse leader, having posted an eight under par 64.

Woods received loud cheers from the crowd on the opening hole at St Andrews

However, they could not help him on the opening hole as his putting also let him down

Woods is always the star attraction at major tournaments, and that has certainly been the case in recent days, with the American not shying away from making his feelings known on the Saudi-backed LIV gold circuit.  

‘I disagree with those who have gone to LIV, I think they have turned their back on what allowed them to get to this position,’ he said at his pre-tournament press conference. 

‘Some players have never had a chance to even experience playing on one of the tours.

‘They have gone right from the amateur ranks to that organisation and never really had a chance to feel what it is like to play a schedule or play in big events.

‘Some of these players may never even get a chance to play in major championships. That is a possibility. They will never get a chance to experience this right here. Walk down the fairways at Augusta National.

‘I don’t understand it. What these players are doing for guaranteed money, what is the incentive to practice? What is the incentive to go out there and earn it in the dirt?’

Having been so outspoken prior to the tournament, Woods would have liked to let his golf do the talking over 72 holes at St Andrews, but he must now use all his resilience to get back into the mix.

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