Tiger Woods misses 3rd consecutive cut at major, ending his season at British Open

Tiger Woods tied a personal record in the British Open on Friday, one he could have done without but perhaps should come to expect.

Woods matched his highest 36-hole score as a professional, 156, to miss the cut for the third straight time in a major.

He tapped in for a routine par on the 18th hole at Royal Troon and signed for a 6-over 77, a round that got away from him early with a double bogey and never improved during the day.

"It wasn't very good," Woods said from Scotland. "I made a double right out of the hopper when I needed to go the other way. Just was fighting it pretty much all day. I never really hit it close enough to make birdies and consequently made a lot of bogeys."

That brought a short season to an abrupt end.

Woods said he won't play again until December, possibly his unofficial Hero World Challenge with a 20-man field in the Bahamas. He specifically referenced what he jokingly calls his fifth major, the PNC Championship, a 36-hole exhibition where he plays alongside his 15-year-old son Charlie.

He played all four majors for the first time since 2019 — the year he won the Masters for his 15th career major — but played only one other tournament, withdrawing after 24 holes in the Genesis Invitational in February because of the flu.

He needs to play more to get sharp. But playing more risks taking a toll on a body that has been battered by back surgeries, knee surgeries and a February 2021 car crash that shattered his right leg and ankle.

It's the ultimate Catch-22 for a player who turns 49 at the end of the year.

"I'd like to have played more, but I just wanted to make sure that I was able to play the major championships this year," he said. "I got a lot of time off to get better, to be better