MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) -- In wind strong enough to blow sand out of the bunkers and kick up dust along the sandy terrain, Tiger Woods squeezed his eyes shut as he tried to clear his vision.That was the least of his problems Friday in the Australian Masters.
He found himself going back to his old swing to help cope with the blustery conditions at Victoria Golf Club, and he turned in a performance that fans around the world are used to seeing this year.
One day after a promising round, Woods began a slow slide down the leaderboard.
With consecutive bogeys on the back nine that killed his momentum, Woods shot a 1-over 72 in the second round and wound up nine shots behind Adam Bland, who played in the same conditions and shot a 4-under 67.
Bland, who will be in the second stage of PGA Tour qualifying school next week, was at 10-under 132 and had a two-shot lead over Andre Stolz, who won in Las Vegas six years ago when Woods was going through his last swing change.
For Woods, it was the seventh time in 14 tournaments that he was at least nine shots behind going into the weekend. The Australian Masters is his last time as the defending champion, and he hasn't come close the four other times. His best finish in a title defense was a tie for 15th at the BMW Championship in Chicago. He was nine back after two rounds at Cog Hill, too.
"It was frustrating because I hit the ball well pretty much off the tee, and wasn't quite as sharp with the irons," Woods said.
Woods was at 1-under 141, tied with Camilo Villegas, who shot a 70.
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Source: http://golf.fanhouse.com/2010/11/12/tiger-woods-game-gone-with-the-wind-at-australian-masters/
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