Tiger Woods is on track for his first Masters start in 3 years

Tiger Woods has until his first-round tee time at Augusta on April 5 to decide if he’ll play the Masters for the first time since 2015, but it’s obvious the winner of four green jackets plans to go for his fifth come the first Thursday in April.

Woods, who on Thursday will make his debut at the Valspar Championship specifically to get more competitive reps ahead of the Masters, said on Wednesday that he’ll practice at Augusta ahead of the men’s first major of the season. In doing so, he acknowledged without spelling it out that he’ll be in the Augusta field and that he liked his and other geezers’ chances of contending with the youngsters.

“I’m going to go. I’ll go there before. I haven’t played in a couple of years now and I’d like to get up there and take a look at it,” Woods, who finished T17 in his last Masters start three years ago, told reporters after an early-morning pro-am at Innisbrook.

“I know there’s no changes as far as design. I think they’ve resurfaced some greens here and there so I’ll take look at those and see if those breaks match my book … and get used to putting on bent[grass]. I haven’t putted on bent in literally years,” Woods noted, “so that’s going to be a little bit different.”

Woods, of course, is on the comeback trail after undergoing spinal fusion surgery last April and returning to official PGA Tour competition in January at Torrey Pines. After sharing 23rd place at Torrey, Tiger missed the cut at the Genesis Open but bounced back with a 12th-place outcome at the Honda Classic.

Barring health setbacks or other unforeseen circumstances, Woods will enter the Masters with at least two rounds (four, if he makes the cut) at Innisbrook and another two to four at Bay Hill to add to the 10 he’s played so far in 2018. And he suggested that the golf world pay attention not only to the generation of golfers who grew up idolizing him but to those with whom Tiger has tangled with over the years of his illustrious career.

Indeed, after lauding his old rival, Phil Mickelson, for his victory at last week’s WGC-Mexico Championship — Lefty’s first win since the 2013 British Open (“I think it’s great … what he did on Sunday was very cool to watch”) — Woods observed that it’s not just the 20-somethings who are likely to contend at Augusta.

Not often over the years you have heard Tiger heaping praise on Phil but he did so today regarding the WGC-Mexico win
— Bob Harig (@BobHarig) March 7, 2018

“The favorites are guys who’ve always done well there,” said the guy with four Ws.

While his playing partner for the first two rounds of the Valspar, Jordan Spieth, gets around Augusta pretty well (one win, in 2015, plus two ties for second and a T11), Woods cautioned against overlooking old-timers like Fred Couples, Bernhard Langer, Phil Mickelson, and himself.

“There are a few others that do well almost every year,” said Woods, who, like Mickelson before last week’s triumph, has not visited the winners’ circle since 2013. “We just know how to play the golf course and it fits us.”

Sure, Woods conceded, younger guys who are playing well have a chance, but “Augusta’s also one of those golf course where it favors the vets.”

Though he’s clearly one of the grizzled elders who knows all the nooks and crannies of Augusta as well as anyone, Woods said he was happy just to participate — a far cry from there old days when the 14-time major champ would claim he was in it to win it.

“For me, I’m ecstatic just to have a chance to play again and to have a chance to win golf tournaments and compete. There was a while there where it didn’t look like I was ever going to be out here today … as a professional player,” said the world’s 388th-ranked player (up from No. 656 at the beginning of the year). “But here I am, playing again, and it’s a lot of fun.”

We’re guessing the throngs of fans following Tiger’s every move, even in a meaningless pro-am, would heartily agree.

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