TIGER WOODS’ BRIEF RETURN, JORDAN SPIETH’S ERROR – FIVE THINGS WE LEARNED FROM THE GENESIS INVITATIONAL

The third ‘Signature Event’ of the PGA Tour season had all the ingredients to be a real showstopper with an elite field, including the long-awaited return of a certain Tiger Woods, at a world-class course in Riviera Country Club. It was Hideki Matsuyama who stole the show on Sunday underneath the Hollywood lights. Here are the five takeaways from a strange week at the Genesis Invitational.

The third ‘Signature Event’ of the PGA Tour season had all the ingredients to be a real showstopper with an elite field, including the long-awaited return of a certain Tiger Woods, at a world-class course in Riviera Country Club.
Despite a bizarre second round in which we lost both Tiger and Jordan Spieth for very different reasons, the tournament still delivered, and it was Hideki Matsuyama who stole the show on Sunday underneath the Hollywood lights.

TIGER RETURNS…BRIEFLY
It was the talk of the town, the tour and the world of golf. Tiger Woods was going to be playing in a PGA Tour event, the first official start since he was in too much pain to walk and withdrew from last year’s Masters during the third round.
The tournament host produced some eye-catching moments during his first round, where he was grouped with good friends Justin Thomas and Gary Woodland, who is also not long back after time away due to brain surgery.
He rattled off five birdies, but he coupled that with six bogeys as competitive rust caught up with him, as did his fused spine where an uncharacteristic shank coming down the 18th was a result of back spasms.

Unfortunately, his body would beat him again the following day. A rather sluggish looking Tiger struggled to get anything going and much to the shock of everybody, he hopped on the back of a cart at the 7th hole with cameras subsequently capturing him with his head in his hands as he was whisked away to the clubhouse.
Events took an even more dramatic turn when an ambulance and two fire trucks turned up at the Riviera clubhouse.
There was a sigh of relief after Woods was later seen walking out of the clubhouse and into the passenger seat of a waiting courtesy car.
We soon learned that Woods had received treatment, including an IV bag, for potential dehydration and dizziness related to illness, which was confirmed by his long-time friend Rob McNamara.
“He had a little bit of a fever and was better during the warm-up, but then when he got out there and was walking and playing, he started feeling dizzy,”

McNamara said. “Ultimately the doctors are saying he’s got potentially some type of flu and that he was dehydrated. He’s been treated with an IV bag and he’s doing much, much better and he’ll be released on his own here soon.”

Asked if it had anything to do with Woods’ previous injuries to his ankle or back, McNamara said: “Not physical at all. His back is fine. It was all medical illness, dehydration, which is now, the symptoms are reversing themselves now that he’s had an IV.”
As a result, Woods wasn’t present on the Riviera property on Sunday where he traditionally presents the trophy but he took to social media to share an update: