Tiger Woods in confident mood for first major of year at US PGA

Woods shrugs off lack of spectators as he chases a 16th major
American plays with McIlroy and Thomas in first two rounds

Incongruous though it may seem for a sportsman whose most famous successes have been against the backdrop of euphoria among galleries, Tiger Woods has shrugged off any sense the lack of spectators at the first major of 2020 might affect his game mode. No fans, no problem as far as Woods is concerned before the US PGA Championship starts on Thursday at Harding Park in San Francisco.

Woods has made only one competitive appearance on the PGA Tour since it resumed in closed-doors format. After a promising start, he struggled in the Memorial Tournament at Muirfield Village. Rory McIlroy has been candid about his struggles with concentration in events minus spectators.