Tiger Woods will not be featuring at this year’s Open Championship as the legendary golfer continues his recovery from an Achilles injury he sustained in March. While the injury has kept the 49-year-old out of action for the most part of this year, Woods has revealed what actually baffled him about Royal Portrush during the 2019 Open Championship.
Woods Reveals Real Reason For Royal Portrush Struggles
Woods received a rude shock at the 2019 Open Championship when he missed the cut despite winning the Masters a few months earlier. Rory McIlroy also missed the cut in a tournament that Shane Lowry eventually won. The 15-time major winner has played at The Open 23 times during his stunning career, emerging victorious in 2000, 2005, and 2006. The titles make up his 15 major championship wins overall — a record that is only surpassed by Jack Nicklaus’s 18.
The Grand Slam winner immediately noticed that the greens at Royal Portrush reacted very differently from what he was used to, even by links golf standards. Describing them as “springy,” he found that the turf caused golf balls to rebound off the surfaces rather than settle. The bounce and firmness of the greens made approach shots far more difficult to control.
Keep Reading: Bryson DeChambeau Labels Royal Portrush “Diabolical”
“It can play so many different ways,” Woods said. “A lot depends on the wind and what it does. Some of the bunkers here, you wonder why in the hell is it there. And then all of a sudden it’s in play. The difference between this layout versus most of The Open layouts is that the ball seems to repel around the greens a lot. You’re going to have a lot of either bump-and-run chips or slow putts coming up the hills. But it’s an unbelievable golf course.”
Woods Spent Lots of Time Studying Royal Portrush Than Anticipated
Woods admitted he needed to spend far more time studying the course than he had anticipated. He carefully documented shot outcomes, wind effects, and roll patterns in his yardage book. He acknowledged that he would need to rework his entire strategy hole by hole, adjusting not just for pin placements and wind direction but also for how the turf interacted with the ball after landing.
Tiger Woods watches his son, Charlie Woods play during the first round of the108th Amateur Championship at BallenIsles Country Club on June 5, 2025, in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida.
Woods struggled to adjust to the way the course demanded precision off the tee and a strong short game in gusty conditions. The firm fairways, thick rough, and pot bunkers were punishing for any missed shots. He shot a disappointing 7-over 78 in the first round and failed to make the cut after a second-round 70. That was shocking for fans and even for Tiger, who had high expectations coming into the tournament.
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