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Posted April 6, 2012, 11:07 pm
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Woods not conceding chances for fifth Masters win

  • Article Photos
    Woods not conceding chances for fifth Masters win
    Photos description
    Tiger Woods kicks his club after a poor tee shot on No. 16 during the second round. Only two birdies and five bogeys put Woods' round at 75 and tied for 40th place.
  • Article Photos
    Woods not conceding chances for fifth Masters win
    Photos description
    Tiger Woods heads to the 15th green during Friday's second round of the 2012 Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club.
  • Article Photos
    Woods not conceding chances for fifth Masters win
    Photos description
    Tiger Woods walks on the 14th fairway during Friday's second round of the 2012 Masters Tournament.
  • Article Photos
    Woods not conceding chances for fifth Masters win
    Photos description
    Tiger Woods waits to hit on the 14th fairway during Friday's second round of the 2012 Masters. He shot two birdies and five bogeys in the round, closing with 75.
  • Article Photos
    Woods not conceding chances for fifth Masters win
    Photos description
    Tiger Woods hits an approach shot to the 14th green during Friday's second round of the 2012 Masters Tournament.
  • Article Photos
    Woods not conceding chances for fifth Masters win
    Photos description
    Tiger Woods reacts after missing a birdie putt on the 14th green during his 18th Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club.
  • Article Photos
    Woods not conceding chances for fifth Masters win
    Photos description
    Tiger Woods is playing in his 18th Masters Tournament. The four-time winner has tied for fourth the past two years and is tied for 40th place after the second round in the 2012 Masters.
  • Article Photos
    Woods not conceding chances for fifth Masters win
    Photos description
    Tiger Woods hits out of the gallery on the eighth fairway during Friday's second round of the 2012 Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club. He shot 75 and is tied in 40th place.

 

Forget winning a fifth green jacket and 15th major. Tiger Woods will have a hard time simply keeping his streak of top-10 Masters Tournament finishes alive at this rate.

The four-time Masters champion was closer to missing the cut than threatening the leaderboard after a second-round 75. The only golfer to finish in the top 10 in each of the past seven Masters will enter the weekend eight strokes off the pace and tied for 40th at 3-over par.

On a day when Augusta veterans Fred Couples and Sergio Garcia found birdies all over the course, Woods struggled to find the greens. He hit just seven in regulation – tied for the worst on Friday – thanks to a faulty swing that was a source of constant frustration for Woods on the second nine.

“I’ve been working on my short game, and it’s been taking away from my full swing,” Woods said. “Unfortunately it’s not quite consistent. It’s not what it was at Bay Hill and prior tournaments. I have it in stretches. I get it in streaks where it’s really good and then I lose it for a little bit. That’s obviously very frustrating.”

Woods’ triumphant return to winning golf two weeks ago at Bay Hill – his first PGA Tour win in 30 months – seemed a distant memory as he failed to move up the leaderboard on a day that saw 30 golfers shoot par or better.

Woods said he experienced similar swing problems at the Arnold Palmer Invitational but, unlike Friday, he was able to keep the mistakes under control.

“It was happening just a little bit. Even at Bay Hill it was happening,” he said. “But I was able to rectify it and maybe hit one or two shots like that. I would straighten it out, and it would be fine. Here, unfortunately, it’s carrying over to more than that.”

Woods’ day started with birdies at the first and third holes, but they were quickly negated with bogeys on the par-3 fourth and sixth.

He three-putted the ninth for a front-nine 37, just as ESPN’s cameras went live to capture the worst of the round.

Henrik Stenson set the bar high for the fall-apart moment of the tournament Thursday when his first-place 5-under crumbled to a distant 1-under with a record-tying quadruple bogey at the 18th. Woods’ struggles were a more drawn-out process in front of the television audience. The cameras overheard Woods’ tirade of curse words after errant shots at 13 and 15.

“I know what to do. It’s just a matter of doing it. That’s the frustrating part,” he said. “I still creep in to my old tendencies. I’ve just got to stay patient with it and keep doing the reps, and eventually it’ll become where it’s second nature.”

Woods’ frustrations peaked on the 16th tee when he dropped his 9-iron in disgust on the backswing, then kicked the club as the ball sailed into the right greenside bunker.

“It was a simple 9-iron. It’s not that hard,” he said. “It’s a very easy golf shot.”

Woods bogeyed the par-3 after his blast out of the bunker ran off the opposite fringe of the green.

The round ended on a positive note after he found the front bunker on 18 but got up and down in two to save par.

Though the 75 tied for his third-worst score in 68 rounds at the Masters, Woods said he still believes he has a chance to win.

“I’ve been around the block for a number of years and I understand how to be patient. I understand how to grind it out,” he said. “The tournament’s not over. Last year I think on my final round I made up seven shots, so I can do this.”

Woods’ third round will start this morning at 10:45 with reigning Masters champion Charl Schwartzel.