Tiger Woods returned to the Masters on Thursday, finishing the first round with a 1-over-par 73. having not won a major championship since 2008, the former world No. 1 remains four behind Jack Nicklaus' record of 18.
According to Rory McIlroy, that's as close as Woods is going to get.
"I love Tiger," McIlroy said (via the Washington Post). "I'd love to see him do it [break Nicklaus' record]. My heart says yes [he will], but my head says probably not."
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Admittedly, after a workmanlike first round, Woods is yet to recapture his 2008 form. Already 10 strokes off the pace—thanks to Jordan Spieth's 9-under-par 63—the likelihood of him escaping Augusta National with the illustrious green jacket decreased exponentially.
That, however, was not enough to deter Woods.
"It was a good day," Woods said (via USA Today). "I felt good out there. I made probably two dumb mistakes out there, but other than that, the only thing I really struggled with was the pace of the greens. I couldn't believe how slow they were."
"That's the strength of my game," he added when asked of his chip of 34 yards that rolled to within five feet of the 11th hole. "That's the way it should be. I worked my butt off for a couple months, hit thousands and thousands of shots."
He'll have to hit thousands more if he hopes to return to the summit of the PGA Tour, the first coming at 10:30 a.m. ET for Round 2 of The Masters.
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