Woods focuses on the positives after stumbling finish at Memorial

Reuters: Tiger Woods’ first PGA Tour event in five months ended with a grinding final round four-over 76 at the Memorial Tournament on Sunday, but the 15-times major winner said he was leaving Muirfield Village Golf Club focused on the positives.

Woods, who last competed on the PGA Tour in mid-February at the Genesis Invitational where he finished last among players who made the cut, showed a bit of promise but plenty of rust on a layout where he had won five times.

The Memorial offered up a mixed bag for Woods as he returned two promising rounds of one-under 71 but then offset those with two far less impressive 76s.

Woods finished well down the leaderboard on six-over 294 but shrugged off the score as a result of diabolical conditions in Dublin, Ohio combining with some shabby putting and a lack of competitive rounds.

“As far as my swing, it felt good,” said Woods, summing up his performance. “I was able to hit good shots. Friday was a bit off physically, but overall for my first week back it was a lot... of positives.”

Woods got his round off to a bright start with a birdie at the first but there was little to smile about the rest of day.

The 44-year-old reigning Masters champion carded his first bogey at the fourth then stumbled into the turn with a double-bogey at the par five seventh followed by two more bogeys at eight and nine.