Tiger Woods roars back to life with opening three under 69 at Hero World Challenge

TIGER WOODS rolled back the years to offer a hint that he could yet pull off golf’s greatest comeback story.

Woods shot five birdies in a three-under par 69 in his first competitive round for nine months at the Hero World Challenge.

And the 41-year-old admitted he had got the old buzz back.

Wood, three behind the pace set by England’s Tommy Fleetwood at the Albany Resort, said: “For me, that was great.

“I’ve not played for a while, have come through all these difficulties, so it was ideal to score like that.

“It felt good out there and to be part of a scorecard again.”

Woods feared he might never play again after back fusion surgery while his reckless driving conviction turned his life into soap opera.

But his opening round in Nassau suggested there might yet be some life in the old dog - even if the new pups are determined to take a chunk out of him.

Woods added: “I didn’t know if I could still do it.

“I’ve played a lot of holes at home but it’s different doing it in a tournament.

“What was good was that i had a lot of adrenaline out there. I was hitting balls longer than I normally do and I had to choke it back a little.”

Where Woods’ prime saw him attract galleries that were 10-deep around the greens, his return to action saw him firing at targets surrounded by crowds barely in double figures.

The surgery has left Woods walking more stiffly, although there were none of the grimaces of pain that had pock-marked his appearances in recent years.

Instead, there were smiles and even a few airings of the Woods fist-pump, although the cathedral calm of the Albany Resort was a world away from the bedlam of the closing stretch at a Major.

Instead of the “Tiger Roar” to mark his good shots there was often silence or a mere purr of applause.

While he stubbed two short chips a run of three birdies in five holes after the turn were more familiar.

And although a carved drive on 15 which ended buried under a bush cost a shot, Woods

finished ahead of Major winners Henrik Stenson and Brooks Koepka and level with playing partner Justin Thomas..

Fleetwood, who revealed that Woods had told him to “get my hair cut” when they spoke on the practice range earlier this week, trimmed the course with a bogey-free round of six birdies.

The Englishman, two better than his playing partner Justin Rose, said: “It’s always a good sign if you’re bogey-free. I hit a lot of good shots.”