SAN DIEGO — Tiger Woods has his game headed in the right direction for the new year.
He opened his season Thursday with a bogey-free round of three-under 69 in the Farmers Insurance Open and was five shots off the lead. Woods failed to birdie any of the par fives on the North Course.
South Korean rookie Sunghoon Kang birdied his last two holes for a 64. The best score on the South Course was 67 by John Daly. Daly is the last player to win at Torrey Pines when Woods was in the field.
The North Course is not the pushover it has been in past years, with thicker rough than the South and narrow fairways. Woods drove the ball decently, but he didn’t hit a fairway on the par fives and lost four good birdie chances.