Los Angeles, Feb 21: Tiger Woods shook off the accumulated rust of a month-long layoff to put together his best round of the year, a five-under-par 66 in the second round of the Nissan Open on Friday. Woods drove the ball well in the first round when he shot a one-over 72, but his iron play was mediocre and his approaches left him with long putts for birdie on nearly every hole.
The world number one rectified that problem in the second round to give himself better scoring opportunities.
The improvement paid dividends with woods making six birdies and an eagle after managing just two birdies in the opening round to climb from 77th into a tie for 38th.
''I'm starting to feel more comfortable hitting shots now,'' Woods said. ''Yesterday, I'd hit my driver well but my irons were terrible.”
''Today, I drove it just the way I did yesterday but my irons were a lot more crisp, I controlled my distances and got the ball within 10 feet and made a few of those,'' he added.
Surprisingly, woods has not won since he captured the WGC-American Express championship in Atlanta last October.
He also has never won at the Nissan Open in eight attempts, two of which were as an amateur.
His best showings here are runner-up finishes in 1998 and 1999, but over the last six Nissans as a professional, he has never finished out of the top 25.
Woods trails the joint-leaders, Canada's Mike Weir and Japan's Shigeki Maruyama, by eight strokes but remains realistic over his chances of emerging victorious.
''In order for me to make up some ground, I need some weather to come in,'' Woods said.
''The guys are playing so well, if the conditions stay like this it will be tough to make up that many shots,'' he added. Bureau Report