ST ANDREWS, Scotland — At the venue where he stamped his greatness on the sport with the lowest score to par in major golf history, Tiger Woods trudged off the 18th at St Andrews on Thursday with his spectacular decline well and truly validated by the Old Course.
As Jordan Spieth effortlessly assumed the mantle of golf's number one draw with a five-under par 67 and Dustin Johnson went two better with a 65, Woods cut a forlorn figure as he carded a ragged four-over par 76.
On the course where he posted a 19-under par 269 total in 2000, the only 269 on the horizon this week is his room number at the St Andrews Hotel, where he has stayed on every visit since that 2000 success, and even making the cut this week already looks unlikely.