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NASSAU, Bahamas — Tiger Woods looked a lot better in his return to golf than when he left. Playing for the first time since his fourth back surgery, Woods returned from a 10-month layoff with a 3-under 69 on a breezy Thursday in the Bahamas and was three shots behind Tommy Fleetwood after the opening round of the Hero World Challenge. Unlike a year ago, Woods didn’t show any fatigue at the end of his round. His only regret was playing the par 5s at Albany Golf Club in 1-over par. That included a bogey on the par-5 ninth when he took four shots from about 30 feet, starting with a chip that didn’t reach the green. He made five birdies, had a two fist pumps and even a few choice words.

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KAPALUA, Hawaii – It was like 2018 all over again for Rory McIlroy. The former FedExCup champion wanted to rectify his final group woes at the Sentry Tournament of Champions to open 2019 but alas he just continued where he left off in 2018. On six occasions around the world last year McIlroy played in the final group in the final round and in all six he failed to win. He talked about needing patience in those moments. But on Sunday in Kapalua he may have been too patient as he started three off the lead but was overtaken from behind. Only five of the 33 players in the field shot worse than McIlroy’s 1-under 72 in calmer conditions. Winner Xander Schauffele shot 62. The average was 69.7. It dropped McIlroy to a T4 finish on debut in Maui. “My attitude was much better today, I didn’t press at all, I was very patient, it’s just something I’m going to have to persist in, just keep putting myself in these positions and honestly, I don’t think anyone could have beaten Xander today,â€� McIlroy said. “Obviously I could have shot a better score, but I did what I wanted to do. I gave myself plenty of chances, I hit most of the fairways, I hit most of the greens, just couldn’t get the ball to drop.â€� After three rounds of decent putting McIlroy ranked 27th in the field Sunday in Strokes Gained: Putting making just 31-feet of total putts. “Anything that was right-to-left I missed on the high side and anything left-to-right I missed on the low side. So Just one of those days where it just didn’t happen,â€� he said. “I’m going to go home and sort of reflect on this week and reflect on what was good and what maybe wasn’t so good and work on a few things and come back out and having learned a little more about my game than I knew coming into this week.â€� MUST-READS Schauffele embraces underdog mentality Woodland rues missed chance

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NORTON, Mass. – News and notes from Friday’s first round of the Dell Technologies Championship, the second leg of the FedExCup Playoffs, with Dustin Johnson the clubhouse leader after shooting a 5-under 66 in the morning. BUNCHES OF SUCCESS Earlier this year, Dustin Johnson won a tournament. Then he kept winning – two more times, to be exact. He might have kept the streak going had he not slipped down some stairs in Augusta, Georgia. Last year, Johnson won a tournament – the U.S. Open, his first major. Then he won again, a World Golf Championships event, in his next start. The year before that, Johnson won a WGC event, and followed with a couple of T-6 finishes. Johnson, as you can tell, has shown a penchant lately for building on success. Most golfers get the hot hand and play well. Johnson gets the hot hand and keeps winning. And while it’s early at TPC Boston, the FedExCup leader made it clear Friday with his 5-under 66 that he’s determined to keep winning after claiming last week’s THE NORTHERN TRUST. “He’s a great player and he’s not going to let off the gas pedal,� said Bryson DeChambeau, one of the chasers after a 2-under 69. “That’s the one thing you have to take into account.� Johnson said there’s no secret to stringing together wins. “When you win, you’re playing well, so it gives you a lot of confidence,� he said. “For me, that was one thing that was probably lacking a little bit the last few months – just the confidence, just because I wasn’t seeing the shots that I wanted to see. I wasn’t hitting them consistently. So the confidence was just down a little bit. “But you know, after last week, obviously I’ve got a lot of confidence now. I feel like the things I’ve been working on, they are back to working.� Good omen for DJ. Bad one for the rest of the field. HARMAN EYES PRESIDENTS CUP MOVE Brian Harman and Steve Stricker were in the same group for the first two rounds at last month’s PGA Championship. Stricker is the U.S. Presidents Cup captain. Harman is hoping to earn a spot on the team. They’re good buddies. But evidently, the Presidents Cup was not a topic of discussion in those two rounds at Quail Hollow. “I certainly haven’t lobbied for a pick by any means,� Harman said. “… I’m just not a guy that’s going to toot my own horn. I feel like I would be a really good part of the team, but if they don’t think so, that’s fine too.� Harman entered this week ranked 12th in points and has a mathematical shot at making the team on merit. He trails No. 10 Charley Hoffman by 402 points, so a win (worthy 1,100 points) or solo second (630 points) could leap him past Hoffman and No. 11 Kevin Chappell – depending on how those two fare, of course. “It’s very important to me, and I’d love to make it,� Harman said. “But the only way to make it is to play well this week.� Harman did his part Friday with a 3-under 68 that puts him in contention after the first round. While a top-10 spot in the Presidents Cup standings would guarantee him a spot, moving to No. 11 might not be bad either, as Stricker could certainly justify that position as one of his captain’s picks. During his amateur days, Harman played on two Walker Cups and two Palmer Cups. All four times, he played for the winning team. But he’s yet to play on a national team since turning pro. “I’ve done pretty good in the team stuff,� Harman said. NOTABLES WATCH A first-round look at some of the notable names in this week’s field: Jordan Spieth (72) – Spieth ranks 177th on TOUR in putting from 7 feet, making less than 52 percent of his attempts this season. He missed two putts between 7-8 feet on Friday. Justin Thomas (71) – A fairly uneventful round, with just one birdie immediately followed by one bogey. “I fought for every stroke,� Thomas said. “I just didn’t have it.� Brooks Koepka (74) – The U.S. Open champ started with a bogey and struggled on the par 5s, making bogey on two of the three. ODDS AND ENDS Prior to Kevin Tway’s ace, the par-3 11th had yielded just three birdies in the first 70 or so golfers who had played the hole Friday. Tway’s hole-in-one was the ninth in tournament history and the third at that hole. … Kelly Kraft suffered a septuple-bogey 12 at the par-5 second hole. That’s the largest score recorded on a single hole this season on TOUR. Kraft eventually withdrew after hitting his tee shot on the 15th hole with an injury to his right foot. … Ryan Moore also withdrew after signing for an 11-over 82. Both players started the week inside the top 70 bubble but could drop out.

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