• Woods: ‘I had a good shot’

    Tiger Woods
    Tiger Woods
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    Tiger Woods gave himself a chance on the final hole but came up one shot short of forcing a playoff with Paul Casey, who won the Valspar Championship for his second victory on the PGA TOUR.

    Woods was seeking his first TOUR win in 1,680 days.

    Instead, it was Casey who won on TOUR for the first time in 3,262 days by shooting a 6-under 65, tying for the low round of the week.

    Prior to Sunday, Casey’s lone TOUR win was the 2009 Houston Open, although he’s posted 13 wins on the European Tour. He entered this week ranked 17th in the world.

    Woods – whose last win was the 2013 World Golf Championships-Bridgestone Invitational – shot a 1-under 70, tying Patrick Reed for second. It’s his best result since returning to TOUR competition following a year’s absence while rehabbing from his fourth back surgery.

    Woods, a two-time FedExCup champion, moves to 43rd in the standings.

    ‘I keep getting just a little bit better and a little bit sharper,’ Woods said after finishing at 9 under. ‘Today I wasn’t quite as sharp as I would’ve liked to have had it, but I had a good shot at winning the golf tournament.

    ‘A couple of putts here and there and it could’ve been a different story.’

    Woods was two strokes off the lead going into the 17th hole, but drained a birdie putt from 43 feet, 8 inches to close within one of Casey, who had finished his round more than an hour earlier.

    The putt send the huge crowd at Innisbrook into a frenzy, but on the final hole, Woods’ birdie try from 38 feet, 11 inches failed to reach the cup.

    Woods opened with a birdie on the par-5 first hole, bogeyed the fourth hole, then reeled off 12 straight pars, struggling to get any good looks at birdie. Woods said he felt like he was a half-club off on his iron shots, unable to dial in the right distance. That forced him to take a conservative approach into the greens, leaving him with too many lengthy birdie opportunities.

     ‘I didn’t feel that sharp with my iron game,’ Woods said. ‘… I kept getting the half club. Just one of those days I couldn’t quite get the full club.’

    Woods will play on TOUR for the second consecutive week at the upcoming Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard, a tournament he’s won eight times, including his last appearance there in 2013.

    ‘It’s going to be good for me to get back,’ Woods said. ‘I’ve had some great memories there.’

    Photo: Michael Reaves/Getty Images

    Credit: PGA TOUR

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