Tiger Woods shows he still has some magic in him at the Genesis Invitational

Tiger Woods made a triumphant return to the PGA Tour on Thursday, shooting a two-under 69 in the first round of the Genesis Invitational that included three straight closing birdies

The way Tiger Woods unleashed his long drives on Thursday, the way he fist pumped after birdie putts, the way the massive gallery surrounded every hole as he walked around Riviera Country Club, it was like he had never left. That the smashed-up SUV by the side of a Los Angeles road had never happened. That his fractured right leg was perfectly fine.

None of that is true, of course, but Woods, playing his first PGA Tour event since the Open Championship last July, toughed it out like only his iron will knows how.

Woods completed his first round at the Genesis Invitational with three straight birdies to shoot a two-under 69 and place himself in a spot that seemed improbable two years ago: firmly in contention at a golf tournament.

Woods began his round, his first in a non-major in 844 days, with a birdie at the par-five first hole, electrifying the gallery that had come to see his pairing with Rory McIlroy and Justin Thomas. But he was just one-over through 15 holes after bogeys at 10 and 12. Even Woods isn’t imperious to pressure and butterflies. He told himself coming off the 12th green that he needed to get going, at least as much as his still-sore ankle would allow it. On the 16th, the magic returned.

Woods’ approach on the par three bounded onto the front of the green and rolled toward the cup, settling five feet away and setting up a birdie to get him back to even on his round. On the 17th, after a massive 322-yard drive down the fairway, he hit his second shot from 276 yards out over the right side of the green. He managed to pitch to 24 feet and made the right-to-left putt for another birdie, unleashing one of his iconic fist pumps as Woods moved under-par once again. Then, on the 18th, after a low missile that rolled nearly 60 yards down the fairway, he took dead aim at the flag and hit it to seven feet, making his third birdie in a row as the Los Angeles crowd roared and chanted his name.

Woods’ game bellies his age and lengthy injury history

He had a noticeable limp as he walked around the familiar grounds of Riviera, where Woods first played as a 16-year-old amateur more than 30 years ago. But, now 47, it hardly affected his game.

Woods was 18th in the field during the first round averaging 302 yards off the tee. McIlroy, his playing partner, was the second-longest driver on tour last season; Woods outdrove him by 23 yards on the third hole and again on the closing 18th. The tour average ball speed off the tee is 172 mph; Woods averaged 178 mph on Thursday.

Woods’ two-under round left him in a tie for 27th place, five shots out of the lead held by Max Homa. He beat World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler, reigning U.S. Open champion Matt Fitzpatrick, tour wunderkind Tom Kim, and Jordan Spieth. He’s currently tied with Viktor Hovland, Xander Schauffele, and Will Zalatoris.

None of those players have had to endure what he has the past two years, undergoing relentless rehab just to get the chance to compete on tour again. Woods tried to reproduce how it would feel to be back out there while practicing on his home putting green, but nothing compares with actually stepping up to the first tee, the eyes of the golf world firmly on him.

“I was able to simulate nerves at home because I’ve come off layoffs before…but there’s nothing like come game time just the feeling of the butterflies and trying to calm all that stuff down,” he said following his round. “The adrenaline, the ball goes further…I had to dial all that back in.”

Now comes the hard part. Woods has just 14 hours to get ready to do it all over again, to put more strain and pressure on his still-injured ankle. His post-round routine now consists less of hitting more balls and more of ice treatments. His reality is different now, but, at least on Thursday, it still seemed like little had changed.

The Tiger Magic had returned to the PGA Tour.