World Number One Tiger Woods enjoyed the company of Fred Couples and Stephen Gallacher in Tuesday’s Champions Challenge, but is now ready for the serious business of the Omega Dubai Desert Classic.
Woods, a winner of the event in 2006 and 2008, featured alongside good friend and 1995 winner Couples and defending champion and former Walker Cup opponent Gallacher in the pre-tournament showpiece to mark the 25th anniversary of the Dubai Desert Classic.
“It’s fantastic, getting to go out there yesterday to play with Stephen and Freddie,” the American said ahead of the final leg of The European Tour’s Desert Swing. “I hadn't played with Stephen in a very long time.
“We were talking about the Walker Cup back at Royal Porthcawl. We go back quite a long way, and obviously Freddie, one of my best friends, so it was quite a day to have all the past champions out there playing and competing and having a great time, having a blast, and from what I hear, each group had a lot of needling going on, so that's good stuff.”
Woods’ first appearance of 2014 saw him finish tied for 80th at Torrey Pines last week, but the American feels his game will be sharper this week having ironed out a few creases.
“I definitely feel fit - there's no doubt about that,” he added. “My game certainly was nowhere near as sharp as I would have liked last week.
“I was just a fraction off, and a fraction off on a golf course set up that hard, it bit a lot of us, and unfortunately it bit me pretty hard. I think the average score was just over 73 on Saturday, and I shot 79.
“I needed to make a few changes, just a few slight adjustments, and I did that, and I had unfortunately Sunday off, so I had a chance to go home and hit a few shots. I came out here and just wanted to improve every day. Tuesday was better than Monday, and Wednesday was better than Tuesday. Hopefully tomorrow will be even better than today.”
Woods' quest to surpass Jack Nicklaus’ haul of 18 Major Championships has been stuck on 14 since the 2008 US Open, but the US Ryder Cup star believes this year’s venues give him an excellent opportunity to land a 15th title.
“I think just being patient and putting myself there is key,” he added. “You're not going to win them every year.
“I certainly look at my career, I haven't won them all each and every year I competed as a pro, but I've got to keep putting myself there, and if I can keep doing that, I'll start clicking a few here and there. The key is to just keep putting myself there.
“These four venues are four venues that I've played well at. Three I've won at, and one I'm trending in the right way. I'm looking forward to these Major Championships and this season in general.”
