Yellow for snapper then red

THERE are probably only marginally fewer pictures of Tiger Woods in circulation than there are grains of sand on the shores of the Firth of Forth.

Few, however, have upset the equilibrium of the most composed sportsman on the planet quite as dramatically as two snapped by a trigger-happy Japanese photographer on the first hole at Muirfield yesterday as the Woods circus rolled into town in typically controversial fashion.

''Pissed off,'' was Woods' inelegant though understandable verdict to millions of television viewers after recording a one-under-par total frustratingly punctuated by a flurry of putts which lipped, grazed and jumped over the hole and a cameraman who clicked at the most inopportune of times.

Woods stepped away, threw an exasperated glare at the snake-like tribe of photographers and said: ''Please don't take a shot before I hit.''

With adrenaline pumping and red mist not quite evaporated, he re-addressed his ball and proceeded to take a line not dissimilar from the copious crabs along this craggy coastline sideways into the waist-high rough where the ball disappeared under the Muirfield hay.

Woods, by his own admission, was looking at the prospect of an opening double bogey. Pretty soon he was fixing the same Japanese photographer with a steely stare as the shutter again engaged at the point of address.

''You guys have enough frickin' pictures,'' growled the Tiger. ''You did it on the tee. Now you're doing it again.''

At which point the errant cameraman was hauled to one side by Muirfield's press chief and his arm band, denoting the privilege of walking within the ropes was seized like a trooper stripped of his rank on the field of battle by an impromptu court martial.

What happened next defied the laws of golfing credibility because, though Woods could barely see his ball so desperate was his lie, his incredible strength somehow allowed him to hack out onto the fairway, chip onto the green and hole an eight-foot putt for what must rate as the day's most eventful and unlikely par.

The favourable result helped Woods come to terms with his grievance though his mood was still unforgiving.

''On the first hole the cameraman was out of line,'' said Woods. ''He took the picture at an inappropriate time and I backed off the shot. I wasn't as committed to my line as I should have been the second time around.

''Consequently I hit a poor tee shot and somehow hacked it out of the fairway. I don't know how I did that. I could have hit it a foot but it came out great. It's fine taking a picture, it's their job. But these guys are professionals, they know when to do it. That one might have had a heavy finger.''

At times the same might have been said of Woods' putting, especially at the 468-yard par-four sixth when he uncharacteristically missed a three-foot putt for par after boldly racing his approach putt past the hole.

There were at least half a dozen occasions, however, when with more fortune he might have posted birdies which would have leant a more ominous flavour to the leaderboard.

As it is Woods, despite his brush with the photographers, is handily placed, which says even more for the performance of Justin Rose, currently Britain's leading golfer and a young man of inscrutable temperament.

True, he admitted to being more nervous than he had been all year on the first tee but then no one said he had ice for blood.

The way he coped, a towering first two-iron down the middle of the fairway, followed by a par and two birdies, was impressive.

It was his eagle on the 508-yard par-five ninth, however, which confirmed the promise of a champion in the making a two-iron off the tee followed by a four-iron to four feet against the backdrop of Muirfield's majestic coastline providing a picture of pure perfection.

A bogey at the 10th was the one blemish on a scorecard which was the perfect answer to those who feared he might be intimidated by the sheer proximity of the world's richest and most famous sportsman.

''There is definitely an aura about him,'' admitted Rose. ''The first time you play with him is an eye-opener but I didn't get caught up in watching him or all that stuff that goes on around him. I focused on my own game and realised the Open Championship is an important tournament for me. But outscoring Tiger today doesn't mean anything for the rest of the tournament.

''I thoroughly enjoyed the experience. I was pretty nervous on the first tee. But I did know I had the ability to cope with it and it's nice to have done all the things out there.''

The ovation as he walked up the 18th, every bit as warm as the reception for Woods, said much about the gathering affection for the youngest man in the field.

Getting ahead of Woods, however, is one thing. Staying there is quite another.