Tiger Woods Pulls out of Omega Dubai Desert Classic

— -- DUBAI, United Arab Emirates -- Tiger Woods withdrew from the Omega Dubai Desert Classic on Friday morning, according to the European Tour. No reason was given.

Woods, 41, shot an opening-round 77 that included 5 bogeys and no birdies. It was his worst score in 29 rounds at Emirates Golf Club, where he has won twice and finished in the top 5 on five occasions.

At times during the first round, Woods appeared to be in distress, walking tentatively and being careful when lining up putts. This was just his third tournament start since returning from more than a year following two back surgeries in 2015.

"No, I wasn't in pain at all," Woods said when asked directly about it after the first round. "I was just trying to hit shots and I wasn't doing a very good job."

Woods is scheduled to play at the Genesis Open in two weeks followed by the Honda Classic.