Woods Hopeful For 15th Major Heading into Shinnecock

Tiger Woods will be playing in his 20^th US Open and his first since 2015. Woods said, “I’ve missed playing the US Open. It’s meant so much to me and my career.” Woods won the 2000 US Open at Pebble Beach by a historic 15 shots, which is still the record for the largest margin of victory in a major championship. He also won the 2002 US Open at Bethpage Black and the unforgettable US Open at Torrey Pines in 2008, which he won after tearing his ACL and breaking his leg in two places.

“I’m looking forward to playing this week. I’ve really missed playing US Opens and this will be another fun test,” said Woods. He played his first US Open at Shinnecock in 1995, he would withdraw due to injury. He finished T17 when the Open returned to Shinnecock in 2004. Woods said, “It’s changed a lot from the two times that I have played here previously, it’s a lot longer, the fairways seems to be twice as wide. It’s a very different test, a very different look.”

Tiger Woods of the United States is interviewed during a press…

Tiger Woods of the United States is interviewed during a press conference prior to the 2018 U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club on June 12, 2018 in Southampton, New York. Get premium, high resolution news photos at Getty Images

Woods struggled on the greens in his last start at the Memorial Tournament. “I didn’t feel comfortable over it. I couldn’t see my lines. I didn’t feel comfortable and didn’t hit many good putts,” said Woods. He remains hopeful and believes that he has put in the work coming into this week. “I’ve worked on it pretty hard this past week. I just had to hit a lot of putts, just put in the leg work and I was able to do that. My stroke feels good. Hopefully I hit good solid putts and we will see what happens,” said Woods.

Tiger Woods of the United States smiles on the eighth green during a…

Tiger Woods of the United States smiles on the eighth green during a practice round prior to the 2018 U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club on June 12, 2018 in Southampton, New York. Get premium, high resolution news photos at Getty Images

The recurring theme of Wood’s game is that there has always been something missing. “Golf is always frustrating. There’s always something that isn’t quite right,” said Woods. Some days his ball striking is outstanding but his putting was poor, such as at the Memorial. Or his ball striking can be poor while his putting was lights out, such as at Riviera earlier this year. Woods said, “Of the tournaments that I have played in this year, there’s always something. Hopefully this is one of these weeks where I put it all together and even it out.”

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