Tiger Woods to miss weekend at U.S. Open for second time

UNIVERSITY PLACE, Wash. -- Other than slipping on the side of a hill on his first hole, there were few of the negative dramatics for Tiger Woods on Friday that he endured a day earlier at the U.S. Open.

Still, he could do no better than 76 at Chambers Bay to finish 36 holes at 16-over-par 156, his worst score as a pro at a major championship. It was a foregone conclusion when Woods began the second round that the three-time U.S. Open winner would miss the cut.

"I wanted to shoot 5 or 6 [under] today," Woods said. "But I wanted to be on the other side of it. I hit it a little bit better today, but I made nothing [on the greens]. I didn't make any putts the first two days. I hit it better today, hitting some spots where I could hit some putts. I made nothing."

The top 60 golfers and ties after the second round made the cut, which was at 5 over. Woods missed the cut by 11 shots. Woods' playing partner Rickie Fowler also missed the cut at 14 over after shooting a 3-over 73 on Friday.

It is just the fifth time as a pro that Woods has missed a cut in a major championship and the second time in three majors.

His other missed cuts came at the 2006 U.S. Open, his first tournament following the death of his father, Earl; the 2009 Open Championship; the 2011 PGA Championship; and the 2014 PGA Championship. Woods has never missed the cut at the Masters as a pro.

"On a golf course like this, you get exposed and you have to be precise and dialed in," Woods said. "And obviously I didn't have that. Obviously I need to get a little better for the British Open, and I'll keep working at it."

Woods made just two birdies a day after shooting 80, his worst score in the U.S. Open and the third time this year he has shot in the 80s.

The missed cut was his second in 2015 but just the 13th of his PGA Tour career and 14th overall worldwide -- which matches his number of major titles. When he won the last of his majors at the 2008 U.S. Open, Woods had missed just four cuts.

For comparison, Jack Nicklaus also missed 13 cuts on the PGA Tour before age 40.

Woods, who is ranked 195th in the world -- he was No. 1 just 13 months ago -- will fall outside of the top 200. He is scheduled to play the Greenbrier Classic in two weeks followed by the Open Championship at St. Andrews, where he has won twice.

But Woods appears a long way from contending. He seems resigned to dealing with struggling in the short term as he works on a swing change with instructor Chris Como.

Woods was playing in his sixth tournament of 2015. He now has a withdrawal, two missed cuts and a best finish of a tie for 17th at the Masters. In his last event, he had his worst 72-hole score as a pro (302) at the Memorial following an 85 in the third round.

"Just continue practicing, continue working on it," Woods said. "And hopefully it will be a little better."