Tiger Woods didn’t stop as he crossed the Swilcan Bridge.
The stone bridge that crosses a thin green at St. Andrews’ 18th hole has long been where legends like Nicklaus and Watson stopped on their final journey, enjoying the scene and the appreciation of the gallery. Woods took off his hat, raised his hands, slowed down… but didn’t stop. Make of it what you will.
A few seconds later, as he was walking up the 18th fairway, emotion came over him. He wiped his eyes as the tears flowed. On the nearby first fairway, Rory McIlroy and Jordan Spieth – two of the players who took a measure of his mantle – watched him pass. Would it be Woods’ last time playing the British Open at St. Andrews? Even he himself is not sure.
“I’ve been doing this since 1995,” Woods said. “I don’t know if I’ll be physically able to play another British Open here at St Andrews. I certainly feel like I’ll be able to play more British Opens, but I don’t know if I’ll be able to play when he comes back here.”
At this point, the numbers don’t really matter. Woods goes home early. The red sweater will stay folded in his luggage. The galleries that would have followed him through the weekend will now scatter to chase McIlroy or Spieth or any of the many other netigers drifting after him.
Just for the record: Woods went +3 on Friday to go with a +6 on Thursday. He missed the cut by a mile on a favorable day for scoring, a messy end to what, until Thursday morning, had been an enjoyable week for Woods.
For nearly a quarter of a century, the easy pop-psych explanation for why Woods won so many majors and Phil Mickelson wasn’t that Woods was a cold-blooded killer and that Mickelson was too nice a guy. When Woods kept an icy distance between himself and literally everyone — fans, media, fellow players — Mickelson was warm, engaging, signing autographs at every opportunity, smiling through life while Woods scowled.
This light-dark dynamic has always been too simplistic; Phil’s cheerful exterior belied a ruthless competitive streak, for one thing. But after seeing Woods in action (and inaction) this week at the Open, it’s interesting to note that while Woods is now basking in the love of the golf establishment, he’s a flickering shadow of his former self on the course.
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Of course, there’s a much more obvious explanation for Woods’ struggles: The man nearly died in a one-car crash in February 2021 and is still recovering from that crash. But what’s fascinating is how Woods apparently, at this late stage in his career, is finally coming to terms with the impending sunset. He reached the top of the mountain, but he made the journey practically alone. He looks around for company on the return trip.
Woods spent his championship years treating everyone around him with disdain, if not outright disgust. He has now become a close friend of many of the next generation of players; Justin Thomas even looks up to him like an older brother. He tips his hat to the fans he once neglected. He offers thoughtful responses — well, non-canned ones at least — to media gatherings he would have previously skipped after terrible rounds like Thursday’s.
He enjoys the embrace of golf’s gatekeepers and protects the history and legacy of the game even as LIV Golf moves further into PGA Tour territory. This newfound versatility may not win him more tournaments, but it may win him some peace of mind. And then there was the final climb to 18, the emotion flowing more freely from him than perhaps ever on the course.
“The warmth and cheers on 18 touched me,” Woods said. “I felt [playing partners Matt Fitzpatrick and Max Homa] stop playing at 18 and it was just amazing the amount of understanding and respect from all the people involved in this event.’
Tiger Woods gestures to the crowd as he walks over Swilcan Bridge on the 18th hole. (Glyn Kirk/AFP via Getty Images)
Late Thursday afternoon, at the end of a six-hour round, Woods birdied the 18th at St. Andrews to the cheers of the few remaining fans in attendance, their cries of “GO TOY-GAH!” echoes from the yellow scoreboard of the Open and the imposing clubhouse of the famous Royal & Ancient Golf Club. He had bogeyed his first hole on Thursday and the day didn’t get any better as he finished the first round at +6. Nevertheless, the fans cheered him on, encouraged him, hoping for another miracle.
“All things considered, where I’ve been, I was hoping I could be in this event this year,” Woods said Thursday night. “It’s always been on the calendar, hopefully it’s good enough to play it. And I’m. And I just didn’t do a very good job with it.”
With insufficient rest to allow his battered body to recover, Woods teed off Friday morning at 4:58 a.m. Eastern and had a brief glimmer of hope when he birdied the third hole. But he immediately got that back on the fourth, then bogeyed the sixth and double-bogeyed the 16th. With nothing to play for other than pride, he made his way around the course, finally reaching Swilcan Bridge on the 18th hole.
Woods insists he will not retire, but it is unlikely he will be able to play more than a ceremonial role the next time the Open returns to St Andrews later this decade. It will be a week to remember for Woods, but 36 holes to forget.
Whenever and wherever he plays again, he will be hoping for a better result than the first two rounds of this Open. And since it’s Tiger Woods we’re talking about, he might just get it. If nothing else, he’ll appreciate every last swing.
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Contact Jay Busbee at jay.busbee@yahoo.com or on Twitter at @jaybusbee.
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