Recapping Tiger Woods' Round 2 at the Arnold Palmer Invitational

Zac Al-Khateeb

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Recapping Tiger Woods' Round 2 at the Arnold Palmer Invitational image

Tiger Woods was able to ground out an even-par 72 in Round 2 of the Arnold Palmer Invitational on Friday, overcoming early struggles on the front nine with some familiar golfing prowess.

Tiger bookended the front nine with a pair of bogies before scoring a pair of birdies on Holes 12 and 16, respectively. He had the same issues off the tee that affected him in Round 1, but managed to salvage the day with some grinding. That leaves him seven shots behind leaders Henrik Stenson and Bryson DeChambeau (11-under-par overall through two rounds).

TIGER TRACKER: What's next on Tiger Woods' PGA Tour schedule?

Here's how Woods overcame his early slump to keep in contention heading into Round 3:.

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(All times Eastern)

Hole No. 18: Par 4, 458 yards

5:55 p.m.: Tiger finishes the round at even-par 72, keeping the same overall score of 4-under. That leaves him tied for 17th heading into Round 3 on Saturday.

5:54 p.m.: Oh wow, Tiger's birdie attempt rims out, causing him to fall to his knees. He felt that one. He walks it in for par but that may have hurt worst of all today.

5:49 p.m.: Tiger lands a near-perfect shot that lands left of the hole and trickles downhill to leave about 12 feet for birdie. That would be a miraculous turnaround considering his early struggles today.

5:43 p.m.: Tiger drills a stinger on 18 off the 3-wood. Very nice shot that leaves the ball resting on the left side of the fairway in great position to attack the green.

Hole No. 17: Par 3, 201 yards

5:38 p.m.: Tiger's birdie attempt is  just  right, but he walks it in from less than a foot away for par. One hole remaining.

5:32 p.m.: Tiger 8-irons onto the green where it rolls back onto the fringe. He's got 25 to make for birdie.

Hole No. 16: Par 5, 497 yards

5:27 p.m.: Regardless, he taps it in for his second birdie of the day and he's back to even for the day and 4-under overall. That leaves him seven shots back and tied for 16th.

5:23 p.m.: Wow, Tiger's eagle attempt lips off the right edge and just trickles  inches  away.

5:19 p.m.: Tiger gets himself out of trouble with an excellent shot off the 8-iron. It lands on the green and trickles back to the fringe, roughly 20 feet from the hole. He has a shot at eagle here.

5:13 p.m.: Tiger's tee veers right. It's in the rough but it at least narrowly avoids the bunker.

Hole No. 15: Par 4, 467 yards

5:06 p.m.: And he makes par! Fantastic shot considering the poor setup. He remains 1-over through 15 holes and 3-under for the tournament.

5:04 p.m.: Tiger gets the ball out of the bunker and on to the green, but the ball rolls away to give him roughly a 20-foot putt to make par.

5:03 p.m.: Wow that's a terrible spot. The ball's right on the lip of the bunker and he'll have to make a doozy of a shot to put it in play.

4:58 p.m.: Tiger irons into the bunker behind the green from about 190 yards out, one of the longer approach shots for this hole on the day. He'll need to finagle some here.

4:54 p.m.: Tiger tees off and hits a pretty decent ball. It's just left of the fairway on the fringe and he'll be in play for birdie.

Hole No. 14: Par 3, 215 yards

4:50 p.m.: Par it is. On to 15.

4:47 p.m.: Tiger's birdie attempt is aimed true but doesn't have quite enough to overcome the slight uphill grade. He's 2 feet away from par.

4:41 p.m.: Tiger 5-irons onto the fringe where the ball just creeps onto the green. He's 45-50 feet from birdie.

Hole No. 13: Par 4, 365 yards

4:33 p.m.: Tiger's birdie attempt was right of the mark the entire way. Tough shot, considering the fringe angled downward before hitting a flat green. 

4:28 p.m.: Tiger's shot goes a little long over the drink but lands on the fringe about 13 feet behind the hole. Another outside shot at birdie for Tiger here, but he's likely looking at par again. 

4:24 p.m.: Tiger irons off the tee and it looks good. His ball lands on the left of the fairway and avoids the bunker, about 106 yards from the hole.

Hole No. 12: Par 5, 574 yards

4:20 p.m.: A recap of Hole 12:

4:18 p.m.: No eagle for Tiger, but he does get his first birdie of the day to take him to 1-over for the round and 3-under overall. He's now only eight shots back and is tied for 19th.

4:17 p.m.: Tiger puts a little extra mustard on the uphill eagle attempt. It misses the mark but he's a foot away from his first birdie of the day.

4:10 p.m.: Tiger uses the 4-iron from 254 yards out. It lands on the green and rolls to about 30 feet away on the fringe. It's lucky not to have gone down the hill. Tiger's in prime position for a birdie right here.

4:03 p.m.: Off to a good start for Tiger on Hole 12 with a 323-yard drive off the tee that lands on the fairway.

4:01 p.m.: Good chance for Tiger to get a stroke back here.

Hole No. 11: Par 4, 438 yards

3:59 p.m.: Tiger remains birdie-less through Hole 11, his latest attempt staying left and finishing 3 feet from the hole. Par upcoming. Still 2-over for the day, 2-under overall and nine back from the lead.

3:55 p.m.: Tiger's second shot hits the back of the green and rolls right to the edge of the fringe. He'll have 18 feet to the hole for birdie.

3:52 p.m.: Tiger hits the fairway on his tee.

3:49 p.m.: What he said. 

Hole No. 10: Par 4, 384 yards

3:46 p.m.: The fans will always be there.

3:45 p.m.: Tiger's putt for birdie is an inch right of the mark. He walks it in for par from a foot out.

3:43 p.m.: Tiger gets a good shot from 156 feet out and has the ball about 15 feet left of the hole for birdie.

3:35 p.m.: More tee trouble for Tiger. His iron off the tee goes left into the left fairway bunker. Not what he needs after a rough front nine.

Hole No. 9: Par 4, 460 yards

3:32 p.m.: Tiger's now nine back from the lead and tied for 24th.

3:29 p.m.:

3:27 p.m.: Tiger misses just left on the par attempt and taps it in for bogey. He's now 2-over par for the day and 2-under overall, placing him tied for 23rd. 

3:25 p.m.: Tiger is too aggressive on his putt. It goes left and rolls about 10 feet from the hole onto the fringe.

3:21 p.m.: Tiger didn't like his approach shot the moment it hit the air. It went way left (still on the green) and leaves about 62 to the cup.

3:15 p.m.: Tiger drives the tee for 289 yards; it veers a little right near the fringe but it could be an FIR by the thinnest of margins.

Hole No. 8: Par 4, 463 yards

3:12 p.m.: Tiger two-putts for par. He's still 1-over for the day, 3-under overall and sitting at tied for 20th.

3:10 p.m.: Tiger's putt is well-struck with a slight downhill slope, but lips off the left side of the hole and trickles about 2 feet away.

3:07 p.m.: Tiger is aggressive on his approach shot from about 190 feet out, and launches it beyond the hole. It lands in the fringe about 18 feet from the hole, and that's what Tiger will have for birdie.

3:03 p.m.: Tiger uses the iron off the tee and it goes right of the fairway. He's got some distance between him and the hole however so he's still well in play.

Hole No. 7: Par 3, 201 yards

2:56 p.m.: And walk it in he does. On to Hole 8. Tiger's now tied for 20th in the standings.

2:54 p.m.: Tiger's birdie attempts has the curve, but doesn't have quite enough on it. He should walk it in from about a foot out for par.

2:49 p.m.: Tiger lands his third GIR, and second in a row, with the iron. He's about 43 feet from birdie.

Hole No. 6: Par 5, 552 yards

2:44 p.m.: Tiger pulls his birdie attempt from 12 feet and is forced to two-putt for par. He's battling but is now tied for 18th.

2:39 p.m.: Tiger's third shot lands about 12 feet from the hole, his second green in regulation today. This is his best shot at a birdie of the round.

2:36 p.m.: Tiger's second shot goes a little left and flirts with the lake. He's about 330 feet away from the hole now but can still manage birdie.

2:31 p.m.: Tiger's tee shot goes well right into the bunker off the driver (it's important to note this fairway curves around the lake to the left). Regardless, he's not liking his tees today.

Hole No. 5: Par 4, 374 yards

2:23 p.m.: Tiger's putt seems like it would veer left before cutting back right toward the hole. It still barely misses and Tiger settles for another par. Through five holes, Tiger (tied for 17th) is 1-over for the round and 3-under overall. He's still eight strokes behind leaders Henrik Stenson and Bryson DeChambeau (11-under-par overall).

2:17 p.m.: Tiger short-irons to get on the green (his first GIR today) with his second shot. It's about 30 feet from the hole.

2:15 p.m.: Also, this:

2:13 p.m.: Tiger hits his second fairway of the day.

Hole No. 4: Par 5, 557 yards

2:11 p.m.: And he makes it. On to Hole 5.

2:08 p.m.: Tiger's 20-foot putt doesn't have quite enough curve on it and veers left of the target. He'll walk this in for par, marking the first time he doesn't birdie on a par-5 hole in this tournament.

2:03 p.m.: Tiger's approach shot lands on the green and rolls to finish about 20 feet away from the hole in the fringe. Again, he has a shot at birdie, but it's more likely he goes for par. 

2 p.m.: Tiger's second shot gets him back on the fairway and within striking distance of a birdie. He has made these first four holes a lot more difficult than necessary with his tees.

1:53 p.m.: Tiger's tee on 4 just barely misses the out-of-bounds area a few feet away from the fence. He had about 6 feet of usable land and narrowly avoids disaster. Tiger has only hit one fairway on four tee-offs so far this round.

Hole No. 3: Par 4, 443 yards

1:52 p.m.: Tiger's short game saves him again. He makes putt from a little less than 7 feet out to salvage par. He's still 1-over for the round and 3-under overall.

1:47 p.m.: Tiger chips from the rough on top of a bunker and gets onto the green. Clean shot, but it trickles about 7 feet away from the hole. He's in danger of facing another bogey this round.

1:44 p.m.: Tiger's second shot clears the green and goes into the crowd.

1:38 p.m.: Good tee for Tiger gets him his first fairway in regulation.

Hole No. 2: Par 3, 222 yards

1:31 p.m.: An excellent chip lands the ball inches shy of the cup. Tiger taps it in for par, keeping him at 1-over for the round and 3-under overall.

1:28 p.m.: Tiger's second tee lands in the fringe just short of the green. He can easily manage par here.

Hole No. 1: Par 4, 446 yards

1:21 p.m.: Tiger's putt veers left of the mark. He walks it in for bogey to take a 1-over-par score to Hole 2. He's now 3-under-par overall.

1:16 p.m.: Tiger gets out of the trees back onto the fairway with his second shot, and uses his third to get on the fringe 20 feet away from the hole. It'll take a good putt here to salvage par.

1:11 p.m.: Say this for Tiger: He's consistent. His first tee of the day hooks into the trees off the iron.

1:08 p.m.: Go time.

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Zac Al-Khateeb

Zac Al-Khateeb Photo

Zac Al-Khateeb has been part of The Sporting News team since 2015 after earning his Bachelor's (2013) and Master's (2014) degrees in journalism at the University of Alabama. Prior to joining TSN, he covered high school sports and general news in Alabama. A college sports specialist, Zac has been a voter for the Biletnikoff Award and Heisman Trophy since 2020.