'Low-key sympathy as good as it gets for diminished Woods'

Venue: Royal Troon Dates: Thu 18-Sun 21 July

Coverage: Live power and matter commentary connected BBC Sport website, pinch video clips each day. Daily highlights programme connected BBC Two from 20:00 BST. Click for afloat details.

Tiger Woods wasted nary time.

From nan 18th spread astatine Royal Troon, to nan media mixed area for a fistful of questions, and past into nan backmost of a car, pinch nan motor running, and away.

Airport bound astatine 2.34pm. Private pitchy to Florida. Back location for dinner.

Coming up 18, location was respectful applause for Woods and location was a different consciousness to it.

Slightly low-key. Sympathetic. There was a outcry of, ‘Thanks for coming, Tiger’ which was well-meaning, but sounded a small cringe-making.

Everybody, you sensed, was sad to spot this type of him, but there’s nary different type these days, alas. For nan unsurpassable brilliant of yesteryear, this is arsenic bully arsenic it gets now.

Friday - a time that saw play carnage visited upon nan giants arsenic overmuch arsenic nan minnows - marked Woods’ 3rd missed trim connected nan bounce successful nan fields this year.

He added a 77 to his 79 connected Thursday, much precocious numbers to beryllium alongside his 74 and 73 astatine nan US Open astatine Pinehurst, his 72 and 77 astatine nan PGA astatine Valhalla, and his 73, 72, 82 and 77 astatine nan Masters, wherever he vanished past of those who made nan cut.

That’s 44-over par for Woods’ awesome title season.

There was a milestone, of sorts, early successful his 2nd information connected nan blowy Ayrshire coast.

Out connected nan par-3 5th, Woods recovered 1 of those cavernous bunkers that makes you weep. He made bogey. A landmark, successful a sense.

If you commencement counting from nan awesome aft he won astatine Augusta successful 2019 - successful different words, his past 14 - Woods was now a cumulative 100-over par.

It sewage worse, of course. The par 5 16th was downwind connected Friday pinch a pain astatine astir 307 yards.

Woods, nan maestro game-manager successful his pomp, took retired a driving robust and smashed it, nan shot careering done nan aerial and rolling into nan hazard. Another error.

In modern golf, location has been nary amended man to crippled his measurement done trappy conditions, but that was nan aged Tiger.

His assemblage has grounded him. He’s a protector of nan unit he erstwhile was and thing is going to let him to move backmost clip astatine this point, nary matter really overmuch he says it tin beryllium done and nary matter really overmuch his fans want to spot it happen.

By nan clip he pulled retired of nan gates and headed for nan airport, he was 104-over for those majors. There are 4 77s successful that run, 4 78s, 2 79s and an 82.

“Well, it wasn't very good,” he said. “I made a double astatine 2 correct retired of nan hopper erstwhile I needed to spell nan different way.

"I conscionable was fighting it beautiful overmuch each day. I ne'er really deed it adjacent capable to make birdies and result made a batch of bogeys.”

There was a mobility hanging successful nan aerial and not a batch of clip to get to it. Or questions, to beryllium much precise.

Why is he doing this to himself? What enjoyment is he deriving from it? How could nan top golfer astir of america person ever seen - and are ever apt to spot - return immoderate solace from being a bit-part subordinate connected nan shape he owned for truthful long?

His assemblage is successful request of changeless care, truthful there’s small imaginable of him ever playing capable play to sharpen his crippled successful lesser tournaments to hole for nan majors.

He’s trapped successful a rhythm of mediocrity astatine champion and it’s go difficult to watch.

“I've gotten better, moreover though my results really haven't shown it,” he said, pinch nan benignant of defiance - you mightiness argue, wishful thinking - that he displayed erstwhile saying connected Tuesday he felt he could compete present this week.

“I conscionable request to support progressing for illustration that and past yet commencement playing much competitively and commencement getting into benignant of nan competitory travel again.

"I'm going to conscionable support getting physically amended and support moving connected it.”

Had different missed trim - by a state mile - not proven a sobering experience? “No, I loved it,” he replied.

Woods ne'er lets his defender down but location was a obstruction made of reinforced alloy successful beforehand of him astatine that point.

Out there, getting blown disconnected course, and hitting shots that his imperious, fitter aforesaid would ne'er person hit, he did not look for illustration a man who was loving thing barroom nan thought of nan travel home.

“I've ever loved playing awesome championships. I conscionable wish I was much physically crisp coming into nan majors," he said.

"Obviously it tests you mentally, physically, emotionally, and I conscionable wasn't arsenic crisp arsenic I needed to be. I was hoping that I would find it somehow, conscionable ne'er did.”

Will he beryllium astatine Portrush adjacent year? That was nan Hail Mary question, nan 1 dispatched successful dream of a ‘No, I deliberation I’m done, this is my past Open’.

Only successful his comments and nan measurement he consecutive bats questions is Tiger performing astatine his old, stratospheric level.

“Yeah, definitely.”

Will he beryllium backmost playing competitively successful Scotland again? The chat is that The Open mightiness good return to these shores successful 2027 astatine Muirfield.

“Yeah, I've won 2 Open Championships present successful Scotland, truthful I've ever enjoyed playing up present and enjoyed nan different types of links that Scotland brings.”

Woods comes crossed arsenic a man who’s hating nan struggle but can’t fto go.

There’s been chin-stroking astir his bequest and nan harm he mightiness beryllium doing to it by hanging on, waiting for a amended tomorrow that must cognize successful his bosom of hearts will not come.

There is nary threat to his legacy. None astatine all. The 15 awesome victories will unrecorded on.

The 11 years arsenic world number 1 will astir apt ne'er beryllium matched. He won nan Tiger Slam by finishing a mixed 86 shots amended than nan adjacent champion player.

During 1997-2013 - his wonderment years - he was 126-under par successful majors. The adjacent best, from players who had recorded astatine slightest 90 rounds, was 251 strokes behind.

You capable nan walls of golf’s Hall of Fame pinch stats reflecting Woods’ greatness. His toil astatine Troon, aliases anyplace else, is going to beryllium forgotten successful time.

Who remembers really Jack Nicklaus vanished arsenic a master golfer? He missed 10 cuts successful his past 11 majors. He had 1 top-20 successful his past 40.

Nobody cares. Nicklaus is revered for what he achieved and it will beryllium that measurement for Woods, too. Nothing will effect that.

You conscionable wish that it didn’t person to beryllium this measurement correct now. He raised his headdress and smiled astatine nan reception he received connected nan 18th green.

Gone for now, but returning for judge and still believing that location is 1 much occurrence near wrong him.