A new voice has helped find the old Rory McIlroy

SOUTHHAMPTON, N.Y. – Tiger Woods hopes a return to the type of greens he grew up on can resurrect his putting and put him in contention for a fourth U.S. Open title. On the 10-year anniversary since the last of his 14 major championship wins, Woods hoped the poa annua greens at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club would be the catalyst to finally have all aspects of his game clicking together. In his last start at the Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide just a few weeks ago, Woods ranked first in several ball-striking categories at Muirfield Village including Strokes Gained: Tee to Green (+14.157); Strokes Gained: Approach the Green (+11.164) and Proximity (23 feet, 8 inches). But he could only muster a tie for 23rd as his putting was abysmal. Woods was second-to-last in Strokes Gained: Putting (-7.695) at the Memorial, missing seven putts inside 5 feet and 15 putts inside 10 feet. “I worked on it pretty hard this past week. Just had to hit a lot of putts, just put in the legwork, and I was able to do that… my stroke feels good,â€� the 2000, 2002 and 2008 U.S. Open champion said. “What I did at Memorial, I just didn’t feel comfortable over it. I couldn’t see my lines. And those greens were quick, and I just didn’t feel comfortable and didn’t hit many good putts. I hit a lot of bad ones. “This is a different week, different setup, different grass. This is what I basically grew up on out there on the West Coast. Poa gets bumpy, and it requires a lot of patience. A lot of times you can hit great putts on poa, and it doesn’t go in. The key is to hit putts solid and see what happens.â€� Grading Woods’ comeback has been a tough assignment. A year ago there was a good chance he’d never play competitive golf again after four back surgeries, including a fusion. So on that measure just teeing it up is a success. But in his nine PGA TOUR starts this season he’s produced six top-25 finishes and two top-10s. On both the latter occasions he was in contention to win but didn’t close the deal. By that measure, he has let a few chances slip. “There’s two ways of looking at that. I’ve given myself chances to win, which I didn’t know if I was ever going to do again, and, also, then again, not happy with the fact that I didn’t win because I loved how it felt being there,â€� Woods explained. “I’ve had my opportunities. But also, I’m very thankful to have had those opportunities. I didn’t know if I was going to have them again. “Golf is always frustrating. There’s always something that isn’t quite right, and that’s where we, as players, have to make adjustments. “You’ve seen the tournaments I’ve played in this year. There’s always something. Hopefully, this is one of those weeks where I put it all together and even it out, and we’ll see what happens.â€� Woods played in the 1995 and 2004 U.S. Open’s held at Shinnecock. He withdrew in the second round of 1995 as a 19-year-old amateur after injuring his wrist in the long rough and tied for 17th in 2004.

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HOUSTON — Tony Finau finished his opening round with a string of birdies and then took the momentum right into Friday, making 10 birdies to match his career low with an 8-under 62 to build a big lead in the Cadence Bank Houston Open. Finau was at his best late in the round at Memorial Park, finishing with three straight birdies. His final shot from light rough left of the 18th fairway still had enough spin to check up about 4 feet from the hole. He was at 13-under 127 and four shots clear of Patrick Rodgers (63) among early starters. Alex Noren, part of the three-way tie for the 18-hole lead, was at 8 under with three holes to play when bad weather in the forecast stopped play for the rest of Friday. Noren was facing a 40-foot eagle putt when play resumes Saturday. Masters champion Scottie Scheffler also was in the late wave and was 5 under through 13 holes. Thunderstorms and gusts that halted play are part of a system that is expected to shift to a northerly wind and drop temperatures some 20 degrees over the weekend. Several tee boxes and pin positions were adjusted to account for the forecast. Finau and the other early starters had relatively calm conditions, and he knew Friday morning was the time to score. That’s just what he did. “They set the tee boxes up to where we had to take advantage. We got the better wave,” Finau said. “Thirty-six holes is a lot of golf left, and it’s trickier to score with a north wind. But I’m looking forward to the challenge.” Finau has had a 62 four previous times, most recently at the RBC Canadian Open this summer. Rodgers hit his second shot to inside 2 feet on the par-5 third hole — he started on the back nine — for an eagle, and he finished with two birdies for his 63. He was in contention late at the wind-blown Butterfield Bermuda Championship two weeks ago, tying for third in his quest to finally win on the PGA TOUR. Rodgers was among the elite when he left Stanford a decade ago, growing up in the same junior golf circles as Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas. “It’s a fine line out here. It takes a lot of patience. I can’t force a win out here on this TOUR and I can’t control the conditions and the breaks or what anyone else does,” Rodgers said. “If I do a good job of focusing on what I can control and getting lost in my process of playing, I back myself every time.” Finau shot 30 on the front nine of Memorial Park on Thursday afternoon, finishing with a 35-foot birdie putt. He was back at the course some 12 hours later, rolled in a par-saving 15-footer on No. 1 and posted another 30 on the front nine. “I finished 5 under on my last nine yesterday and I just rolled that momentum right into today,” Finau said. “I thought I made a huge putt for par on No. 1 and then I was kind of off to the races. I almost made a hole-in-one on No. 2 and just kind of cruising from there. It was a really nice round of golf.”

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