Who is this man and what have you done with the real Tiger Woods?
Woods followed up his first round 68 with another birdie barrage on Friday, and his 5-under 66 has him looking like a major threat to win the Quicken Loans National. Woods is 8-under for the tournament and carded six birdies during his round.
Ryo Ishikawa, who shot 63 in the first round, has an afternoon tee time. David Lingmerth is in the clubhouse at 9-under par.
Woods, the tournament host and 266th-ranked player in the world, started out slowly Friday just as he did in the opening round. A bogey on the fifth hole dropped Tiger back to 2 under for the tournament and six shots back of the lead.
But Woods turned on the switch from there. Tiger made five birdies in a nine-hole stretch and moved to within three shots of the lead. He added another birdie on the eighth hole from 36 feet.
“I made a few putts, but also I missed a bunch, too,” Woods admitted. “This could have been one of those really low rounds. But…I’m in a good spot hitting the weekend.”
Tiger hits his 160-yard approach on the par-4 1st hole to 3 feet and would make birdie
The former world No. 1 wasn’t just good with the putter. He hit 10 of 14 fairways in regulation and 14 of 18 greens in regulation.
“I hit the ball really well today. I was very pleased with that,” said Woods.
Tiger sinks a 20-foot birdie putt on the par-3 4th hole
Woods hasn’t won since the 2013 World Golf Championships-Bridgestone Invitational and needs to win this week to get into the 2015 edition next week at Firestone Country Club, where he has won a record eight times. Woods is seeking his third career Quicken Loans victory and the 80th win of his PGA Tour career.
The 68-66 start marked the first time since the 2013 Deutsche Bank Championship that Woods posted two consecutive opening rounds of 68 or better.
Tiger drains 36-foot birdie putt on the par-5 8th hole for his 6th birdie of the day
