Putts hold Woods back

Long putts rolled close but rarely went in for Tiger Woods on Thursday. Still, the four-time Masters Tournament champion finished his opening round with 1-under 71 and a smile on his face.

"I'm very pleased," he said. "I'm right there in the ball game. I'm only six back, and, like I said, we have a lot of golf ahead of us."

On a day when twentysomethings Rory McIlroy and Alvaro Quiros saw putt after putt fall on their way to 65s to share the first-round lead, Woods saw many putts lip out or stop short. After a 1-under front nine, he misread the green on No. 10 and had a par putt spin around the hole at No. 11 for back-to-back bogeys.

"Today was one of those days where I hit beautiful putts. I was hitting my lines, and they just weren't going in, and that's fine," he said. "It's not like I was pulling or blocking it or something like that. I felt really comfortable with it."

The round almost completely fell apart when Woods stood at the 12th tee with a 7-iron in hand but traded the club for an 8-iron. His tee shot was on line but fell short in the bunker. Woods saved par by getting up-and-down.

"I hit a good 8-iron right at the flag and ended up short and had no lie," he said. "I was just sitting in a hole, and I was just pleased to keep it on the green."

Woods used the momentum to get his round back on track with birdies on Nos. 13 and 14. His birdie on No. 14 came from the front of the green and rolled in from about 30 feet, prompting Woods to raise his putter in celebration.

Poor tee shots forced Woods to lay up on three of the four par-5s, including 15, where he hit his second shot from the pine straw.

A long birdie putt on 16 stopped 3 inches short of the hole, sending Woods to a knee is disbelief, and he pulled his putt on 18 to miss another birdie chance.

He will tee off this afternoon at 1:48 within striking distance of the leaders and positioned to head into the weekend as a contender for a fifth green jacket. Three of his four Masters wins started with first-round scores of 70.

"I'd rather be where Rory's at, but, hey, it's a long way to go," he said. "We have a long grind ahead of us. The temperature's supposed to warm up, and I'm sure they'll start making the pins a little more difficult as the week goes on."

Woods' playing partners, Northern Ireland's Graeme McDowell and Australian Robert Allenby, didn't fare as well. Playing in front of some of the largest crowds on the course, both finished over par and will have to fare better today to make the weekend.

"By no means did I play myself out of the golf tournament today," said McDowell, last year's U.S. Open champ. "I mean, I'm nine behind a great 7under par score from Rory, and I've just got to go low from here.

"But I know I'm playing well enough I can do that."

Reach Billy Byler at (706) 823-3216 or billy.byler@augustachronicle.com.