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Emotional Woods discusses The Open: Warmth and ovation 'got to me'

Richard Sellers - PA Images / PA Images / Getty

He won't be playing the weekend at the 150th Open Championship, but it was still an incredibly memorable week for Tiger Woods at St. Andrews.

The three-time major champion is bound for a missed cut after rounds of 78 and 75, but was taken by the reception he received as he walked up the iconic closing hole at the Old Course.

"The warmth and the ovation at 18, it got to me. I felt the guys stop there off the tee at 18 and it was just incredible," Woods said after the round to Golf Channel's Cara Banks. "Just the amount of understanding and respect from all the people involved in the event that come out and support it. The players, all the nods I was getting from the players going out. I looked over there and Rory gave me a tip of the cap, JT did the same. There's something to it that's just different."

Woods told media earlier this week he had this event circled on his calendar as he began rehab on his leg following the horrific car accident last February.

The 15-time major champion has won two of his three Open Championships at the Old Course and has admitted it's his favorite layout in the world. While he's not ready to say goodbye to The Open, he shared his realization that he might have played his last competitive round at St. Andrews.

"I don't know if I'll be physically able to play another British Open here at St. Andrews," Woods admitted. "I certainly feel like I'll be able to play more British Opens but I don't know for when it comes back around here."

Given his course history and the fact he had made the cut in both the Masters and PGA Championship earlier this season, it was reasonable to think that Woods would have a strong week in Scotland.

Those hopes were dashed almost immediately after his tee shot found a sand-filled divot on the first hole Thursday. His approach from the precarious lie found the water in front of the green and led to a double-bogey on the opening hole.

"Well, I'm a little ticked that I'm not playing the weekend," Woods said with a laugh. "I certainly did not play good enough to be around. I wish I would have played better. I wish I would have had a little bit better break at the first hole yesterday and maybe started off a little better, but that's just kind of how it all went from there and it just never materialized."

The main culprit in Woods' struggles this week was an uncooperative putter that he couldn't get dialed in with the slow green speeds at the Old Course. He needed 35 putts in each of his two rounds, a stat that makes any sort of scoring virtually impossible.

"I struggled with the green speeds again today and I could never hit putts hard enough," Woods said. "I was leaving them short again. Consequently, I didn't make enough birdies."

The missed cut will be Woods' second straight at an Open Championship at the Old Course after he also didn't play the weekend in 2015.

Woods now has over 250 days to further strengthen his leg before he makes his next appearance in competitive golf. Outside of the PNC Championship alongside his son, Charlie, it's unlikely we see him in action until next year's Masters in April.

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