Tiger's game still a mystery with Masters looming

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Tiger Woods has struggled with his putting since his return to the PGA TOUR.

ORLANDO (AP) -- The Masters is three weeks away and the status of Tiger Woods' game remains somewhat of a mystery.

He has played only six competitive rounds at two tournaments since reconstructive knee surgery after winning the U.S. Open last June.

Woods was reminded of how long he has been away when he arrived early Wednesday for his pro-am round at the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by MasterCard. It was his first time playing a pro-am since he was here at Bay Hill last year. The Masters, U.S. Open and two World Golf Championships -- the only tournaments he has played since last year -- don't have them.

He was surprised how quickly his game has returned, even if the results aren't evident. He lost in the second round of the World Golf Championships-Accenture Match Play Championship and tied for ninth two weeks ago in the World Golf Championships-CA Championship at Doral.

"I think it's taken less time to get my feel back for my game," Woods said. "I thought it would take a little bit longer. The question mark to me was how many rounds could I play? How much golf could I play? That's probably been the greatest positive is I've been able to recover from day-to-day and not feel a thing."

The negative -- especially at Doral -- has been the putting.

Woods ranked 74th out of the 79 players who finished at Doral in putts per round. Then he played in the Tavistock Cup, an exhibition at Lake Nona, and didn't make much there, either.

He is the defending champion at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, but not necessarily the favorite, despite winning five times.

No course has ever been more feast-or-famine for Woods. Along with those five victories, he has finished out of the top 20 four times. THE PLAYERS Championship is the only tournament where he has finished out of the top 20 more often.

And the field is strong, even though it is missing six of the top 10 players in the world -- Phil Mickelson, Sergio Garcia, Geoff Ogilvy, Henrik Stenson, Robert Karlsson and Camilo Villegas.

It does include Padraig Harrington, who is slowly finding his form before going to Augusta National with a chance to join Woods and Ben Hogan as the only players to win three straight majors since the Masters began in 1934.

The Irishman has not played at Bay Hill since 2000, when he didn't break par and missed the cut.

"This is one of the tough courses on the TOUR," Harrington said. "I'll be interested to see how my game matches up to it compared to when I played it back in '98 and 2000, and I obviously found it difficult then. I know it's still a tough golf course, but hopefully, I'll be a little better equipped to handle it."

Palmer, the tournament host, has rarely been so pleased with his golf course, saying it was "as good as I have ever seen it in my 40-odd years here at the Bay Hill Club."

Woods was particularly impressed with the greens, which are lush and smooth with heavy overseeding during the winter. And that could be what Woods needs to feel more confident about his game.

Even so, the world's No. 1 player isn't worried -- and neither is the tournament host.

"I think he could win any tournament he wants to at this point in time," Palmer said. "Know him as I do, he will make every effort."

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