Woods happy with opening round of 70

Tiger Woods said it was simply a matter of trust.

When he trusted his swing Thursday during the first round of the U.S. Open, he was OK. When he didn't, he wasn't.

Woods made no birdies in his even-par round of 70, but he did make an eagle to offset bogeys on the 9th and 18th holes.

"Ernie (Els) played like you have to play in an Open, 17 pars and a birdie," the defending U.S. Open champion said when asked to assess Els' round. "I had 15 pars, and that wasn't quite enough. The golf course is only going to get tougher, and managing your game is going to get even more important."

Woods' eagle was typically spectacular. On the 555-yard, par 5, Woods' drive left him 237 yards to the front edge.

"I hit a 3-iron in there that I pushed a little, but I got a break, and it worked out well," he said.

He drained the 18-foot eagle but couldn't get anything else going.

"The greens were very receptive today; they weren't repelling shots like they normally do," Woods said. "Depending on the weather, we may get to that by the weekend. All I know is that I feel very good about how I managed my game today. You guys might think it's easy out there because some guys are under par, but believe me, it's not."

Woods was asked if he was disappointed with his score, considering the tame conditions.

"No, not at all," he said. "I wish I could have finished better on each nine, obviously, but this golf course is so difficult. All it takes is just a couple errant shots with your irons into the greens, and you miss it by a yard, and you're making bogey and double. It's very penal if you hit it on the wrong side, and you have to be smart about what you're doing."

On the monstrous 496-yard, par-4 ninth, Woods hit driver and 7-iron for his first two shots. Unfortunately for him, that 7-iron shot landed in a greenside bunker, and he couldn't get it up and down from there.

"When I trusted my swing, I hit it perfect," he said. "And when I tried to steer it just a touch or bow it down and just try to get it in play, I didn't hit the ball straight at all. If I get up there and trust my swing, I'm OK. It's tough to do sometimes, though, because some holes don't fit your eye."

Both of Woods' Open victories came after he opened with rounds in the 60s.