AUGUSTA — This wasn't how Tiger Woods wanted his Masters Week to end.
The five-time Masters champion, resplendent in his Sunday red, doffed his cap and acknowledged the standing ovation from the patrons after he tapped in for par on the 18th hole.
A final-round 77 was the score he signed for, and it left him in an unfamiliar position: last place among the 60 players who made the 36-hole cut.
"It was a good week all around," Woods said. "I think that coming in here, not having played a full tournament in a very long time, it was a good fight on Thursday and Friday.
"Unfortunately (Saturday) it didn't quite turn out the way I wanted it to. Today the round that I – the way that (Tom Kim, who shot 66) is playing I thought I had in my system. Unfortunately, I didn't produce it."
The week began with cautious optimism and Woods' own admission that he thought he could win if things came together for him.
A solid start in the first two days gave Woods passage to the weekend and a Masters record with his 24th consecutive made cut.
Then Saturday came, and he recorded his worst Masters round with 10-over-par 82. The round included two double bogeys, eight bogeys, six pars and two birdies.
Sunday's final round was derailed by a triple bogey on the fifth hole. He made only one birdie, and he also carded three bogeys.
The last-place finish was just the third of Woods' career in events that he made the cut. Previously, he finished last at the 2015 Memorial and the 2020 Genesis.
Woods has endured many surgeries throughout his career, and he's still feeling the effects of a horrific car crash in 2021. Coming into the Masters, he had only played 24 holes of competitive golf this calendar year.
He had hoped to play essentially one tournament a month, including the remaining three majors at the PGA Championship, U.S. Open and British Open.
He didn't say where his next stop would be, but the PGA is next month at Valhalla where he also won the 2000 PGA.
"I'm going to do my homework going forward at Pinehurst, Valhalla and Troon, but that's kind of the game plan," he said. "It's always nice coming back here because I know the golf course, I know how to play it. I can kind of simulate shots.
"Granted, it's never quite the same as getting out here and doing it. Same thing, I heard there's some changes at the next couple sites. So got to get up there early and check them out."
