Tiger and Charlie Woods Take PNC Championship First-Round Lead, Share Top Spot with Seamless 59
Tiger and Charlie Woods sit atop the PNC Championship leaderboard after shooting a bogey-free 59 in the opening round, sharing the lead with teams Langer and Singh. Despite Tiger's recent back surgery and ongoing recovery, the father-son duo made 12 birdies in the 36-hole scramble format at Ritz-Carlton Golf Club in Orlando.
Tiger, still dealing with limitations from his 2021 car accident, chose to walk all 18 holes rather than use a cart - an encouraging sign in his recovery. Though he described his own game as "rusty," Charlie's improved play helped carry the team. The 15-year-old has lowered his stroke average to 70.75 this year at the Benjamin School, where he plays alongside Justin Leonard's son.
"We're trying to pull off each and every shot for each other, and to ham-and-egg, and I think we did that great pretty much the entire day," Tiger said. "And Charlie made pretty much most of the putts."
While both Woods claimed they're just there to have fun, Tiger's competitive nature remains evident. When asked if his drive to win would emerge now that they're in contention, Tiger's response was characteristically simple: "It's always there."
The teams of Lehman and Harrington trail closely behind the co-leaders heading into Sunday's final round. With only 20 teams competing in the parent-child format, Team Woods has positioned themselves well for a potential victory, despite Tiger's ongoing recovery and "rusty" game state.