Troubled Tiger beginning to see the light again

IT says much about Tiger Woods’ current form that his appearance on the early US PGA Championship leaderboard came as something of a surprise at Whistling Straits last night.

Following the worst 72-hole finish of his professional career last Sunday, a tie for 78th place in an 80-man field at the World Golf Championships Bridgestone Invitational in Akron, Ohio, the 14-time major winner had started the week in such low esteem that one reporter had the temerity to ask him if he had felt like the worst player in the world right now.

It is not quite that bad but Woods teed off yesterday in his first major since 1997 that he has not started favourite, and well aware that he was in danger of losing his world number one ranking with another bad week at the office.