Tiger Woods Withdraws From Genesis Invitational after finishing the sixth hole on the front side, Day Two

Riviera kept its secrets in the first round. As the day wore on, the greens got trickier, the wind got stronger, and the world's best golfers lost their way. UCLA alumni Patrick Cantlay leads at seven under par after a scorching start that saw him five under after eight holes. One back is Cam Davis, who fought the front side but cruised on the back nine, finishing it at five under.

Also in contention are Luke List, who also torched the front side, and Australia's Jason day, both of whom posted balanced rounds of six birdies and no bogeys. From there, things went a bit astray.

Next in the leader board is the mercurial Jordan Spieth, who also jumped out five under through 8 holes but played even par the rest of the way. He was outdone in inconsistency by Will Zalatoris, a one-time rising start who has been set back by health issues. He played the front nine in 29 strokes, but slumped to need 37 more to finish the round, tying for the fifth spot.

Most of the other big names had unremarkable rounds. World #1 Scottie Scheffler sits at tenth, but a collection of big names sits tied for 28th place at one under par, including Xander Schauffele, Victor Hovland, Tony Finau, Rickie Fowler, and Colin Morikawa.

The biggest name in the field is the tournament host, Tiger Woods. His plan for the year is to play about one tournament a month, as long as his ailing body will let him do so. Unfortunately, his game shows the rust and lack of match sharpness, and stamina is always a question.

After scrambling to one-under par through the first nine, Woods hit a wall on the back nine. On the 10th hole, his drive ran through the green at the drivable part-4, ending in an impossible downhill bunker lie too close to the overhanging lip. Unable to drop his club onto the ball to go straight at the pin, Woods was forced to aim far to the right of the hole. Although his pitch hit the green, it ran off and down the shaved shoulder, ending up curling behind the sand trap he had hit from. That bogey derailed his round, and he never found his usual momentum.

Tiger is far from a ceremonial golfer, but he's definitely fighting his physical limitations. At times his game looks as deadly as ever, although he has lost the power that set him apart, but there are wobbles that never appeared in his game. He closed with two birdies against four bogeys on the back side. As the round wore on, his gait worsened and he landed more and more heavily on his good left leg. He badly mishit his approach shot on 18, landing in the trees, and admitted after the round that his back was going into spasm on the last few holes. Tiger sits at one over par.

Rory McIlroy lost his way in much more dramatic fashion, following up a double bogey on 15 with a triple bogey on the par-three 16th, following up his front-side 33 with a 41 on the back nine for three over par and 64th place. Pre-tournament favorite Max Homa carded a seven on the second hole, leading to a two-over round that also put him well back of the pack.

Nothing came easy for very long in round one, and the course looks to get tougher and tougher as the greens firm up, the weather cools, and the winds blow. Unless rain comes, it should get harder and harder to post good scores at Riviera as the rounds progress. Fans who like golf carnage are advised to stay the whole day, given how today finished.

Friday's featured tee times: Tiger Woods/Justin Thomas 11:54. Patrick Cantlay/Jordin Spieth 11:42. Cam Davis 11:18. Rory McIlroy/Max Homa 9:25. Tony Finau/Jason Day 7:56.