Tiger Woods Sets Masters Cut Record, Plans on Giving Fred Couples the Needle
AUGUSTA, Ga. — He would never say he is satisfied with simply making the 36-hole cut in a golf tournament. But Tiger Woods did concede just briefly Friday afternoon that doing so at the Masters will allow him a brief opportunity of glee.
“I think I will be able to as soon as I'm done with you guys text Freddy and give him a little needle,” said Woods while talking to reporters, referring to Fred Couples.
Woods played 23 holes on Friday after Thursday’s first round was delayed by weather and completed them in 2 over par, finishing the second round with an even-par score of 72.
His 36-hole total of 145, 1 over par, will easily make the 36-hole cut and give him a Masters record of 24, which dates to his first year as a pro in 1997. He was tied for the record with Gary Player and Couples.
Tiger Woods waves to the patrons during his second-round 72.
Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Network
Given his lack of play this year and the physical limitations due to issues with his lower right leg and back, it is an impressive accomplishment. Woods entered just two tournaments since making the cut and withdrawing from last year’s Masters and then having ankle surgery.
He finished 18th in a 20-man field in the Bahamas in December at the Hero World Challenge and then withdrew after just six holes of the second round of the Genesis Invitational in February due to illness.
When he didn’t enter the Players Championship last month, there was concern about the 15-time major champion’s readiness for this week.
Typically, making the cut for Woods was all about how it impacts the tournament.
“It means I have a chance going into the weekend. I'm here,” Woods said. “I have a chance to win the golf tournament. I don't know if they're all going to finish today, but I'm done. I got my two rounds in. Just need some food and some caffeine, and I'll be good to go.”
Woods didn’t look so good to go when play began at 7:50 a.m. Friday with the resumption of the first round. Although Woods pumped a drive into the 14th fairway, he missed the green short with a wedge and failed to get up and down.
The conditions were cold and windy, making it more challenging. His approach to the 15th missed the green, from where he nearly holed the chip shot before missing birdie putts at the 16th and 17th. He found a greenside bunker at the 18th and couldn’t save par, finishing the first round with a 73.
Woods was up and down across the first nine of the second round, following a birdie at the 3rd with bogeys at the 4th and 5th, then a birdie at the 8hth. He made nice a par save at the 11th, missed the green in the wrong spot at the 14th leading to another bogey, and then birdied the 15th after hitting the green in two.
He parred the remaining three holes, including a nice up and down from 30 yards at the 18th.
“Yeah, I'm tired,” Woods, 48, said when asked about the physical challenge. “I've been out for a while, competing, grinding. It's been a long 23 holes, a long day.
“But (caddie) Lance (Bennett) and I really did some good fighting today, and we've got a chance.”
Count Max Homa as impressed after playing alongside Woods.
“It was awesome,'' Homa said. "It really is a dream to get to play with him here. I've been saying, I always wanted to just watch him hit iron shots around here, and I was right up next to him. It was really cool. His short game was so good. I don't think I can explain how good some of the chip shots he hit today were.
“He's special. We had a really quick turnaround, and if I was feeling tired and awful, I imagine he was feeling even worse. So all the cliches you hear about him and all the old stories about how he will grind it out, it was fun to see that in person.''
Woods is heading to the weekend in a tie for 22nd, seven shots back of the 6-under lead shared by Bryson DeChambeau, Max Homa and Scottie Scheffler.
“I'm right there,” Woods said. “I'm only eight back as of right now. I don't think anyone is going to run off and hide right now, but it's really bunched. The way the ball is moving on the greens, chip shots are being blown, it's all you want in a golf course today.”
DeChambeau began the day at 7 under par and got to 8 under with a birdie at the 13th. Only Max Homa, who finished at 6 under par, and Scottie Scheffler managed to get to 7 under for the tournament.
Woods, 48, first played the Masters as a 19-year-old in 1995, when he was low amateur. He missed the cut in 1996 and turned pro later that year. The following year, in his first Masters as a pro, he won by 12 shots and went on to win the tournament of total of five times, including in 2019.
He missed the Masters in 2014 due to back surgery and again in 2016 and 2017. He missed the 2021 event following a car crash that has seen him making just eight worldwide starts since that time.
“I've always loved playing here,” Woods said. “I've been able to play here since I was 19 years old. It's one of the honors I don't take lightly, being able to compete. The years I have missed, I wish I was able to play because there's such an aura and mystique about playing this golf course that I don't think that—unless you have played and competed here, you probably don't really appreciate.”
Woods holds the PGA Tour record for consecutive cuts made at 142, a streak that went from 1998 to 2005. He broke the record of 113 held by Byron Nelson. Jack Nicklaus once made 105 cuts in a row. No player in Woods’s era has gotten halfway to his record.
He has also missed just 23 cuts overall worldwide in 27 years as a pro.
