Woods has not had a coach of any kind since parting ways with Chris Como at the end of 2017, but it appears that might no longer be the case. While it was the first time that Killen has been with the Woods at a tournament, it was not the first time the two worked together as the 32-year-old Kentucky native had been to see Woods in South Florida recently.<doc-sep>Tiger Woods is seeking some help in curing his putting woes. Per Golf Channel's Tim Rosaforte, Woods was spotted working with putting coach Matt Killen on the back of the range Monday at TPC Sawgrass. The two spent more than two hours together. Woods enters this week's Players Championship having made just three starts this season. (He withdrew from the Arnold Palmer Invitational last week with a neck strain.) While he has finished T-20 or better in each of those starts, Woods also unofficially ranks 80th on Tour in strokes gained: putting (0.168). In his most recent start, at the WGC-Mexico, Woods three-putted six times. “His stroke looked good,” Killen told Golf Digest. “His putting is better. I like what I see.” Woods hasn't had an official instructor since December 2017 when he parted ways with Chris Como. Killen, a 32-year-old Kentucky native, works with Justin Thomas, Bud Cauley and Blayne Barber, among others.<doc-sep>PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. – The early results of the budding partnership between Tiger Woods and putting instructor Matt Killen are promising. Killen works with multiple PGA Tour pros, most notably Justin Thomas, and was asked by Woods this week to take a look at his putting stroke. Woods has been open about his recent struggles on the greens, as the poa annua surfaces on the West Coast and most recently at the WGC-Mexico Championship offered a stern challenge. Back on Bermuda greens in his home state of Florida, Woods started rolling in some putts during the opening round of the Players Championship. The highlight was a 28-foot birdie on No. 13, but Woods also rolled in birdie putts of 13, 15 and 17 feet during a 2-under 70 that left him five shots off the early lead. Your browser does not support iframes. Full-field scores from the The Players Championship The Players Championship: Articles, photos and videos “Well, it wasn’t like I had to do a lot. I just got back into something that I do naturally,” Woods said. “I putt with the toe moving and toe releasing. My face moves a lot more than most players do. And we just went back to that.” Woods had some issues tee-to-green during his opener at TPC Sawgrass, but he ranked 15th in strokes gained: putting despite missing a 4-foot par putt on his final hole. Instead of a weak spot, the putter proved to be an area of strength in his first competitive round since asking Killen to take a peek. “I feel like I can go ahead and hit it with my right hand again,” Woods said. “That’s how I’ve always putted. I always had a lot of hit in my stroke, and that felt good again.”<doc-sep>Dan Kilbridge Golfweek PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. — Tiger Woods is still without a swing coach at this week's Players Championship, but he's bringing in an extra set of eyes on the greens. Woods played a practice round with Justin Thomas and Trey Mullinax Tuesday at TPC Sawgrass and consulted with Thomas' coach Matt Killen on and off throughout the morning. The two have known each other for a while and spent some time talking at the 2016 Ryder Cup at Hazeltine, where Woods was a vice-captain. Woods has since played several practice rounds with Thomas and said that Killen is familiar with his game as a result. "I wanted him to take a look at it and see what he thought of where my setup looked like now versus all the times I've putted well," Woods said. "I've putted well with different postures throughout my career. I've done different things. But I wanted him to take a look at it, and then he mentioned a few things. As I've started to feel a little bit better this week or this past week, then the putting definitely freed up." SPORTS, DELIVERED: Getlatest news right in your inbox! 'BACK ON TRACK': Tiger is ready for Masters despiteneck injury Woods hasn't worked regularly with a coach since splitting with Chris Como in late 2017. The consultations with Killen seem to be experimental for now, and the two talked casually on the course. Killen, who has also worked with J.B. Holmes, declined to speak about their relationship and said he'd let Woods address the matter during his press conference. "I had been feeling that my stroke has been off, but a lot of it is physically," Woods said. "I'm having a hard time getting into the different postures. As my body's felt better, my stroke has come back a little bit. But I also wanted to see where I was off (and) what did he see?" Woods said the neck issue that forced him to withdraw from last week's Arnold Palmer Invitational first started bothering him during the Genesis Open at Riviera and got worse at the WGC-Mexico Championship the following week. There was a correlation, Woods said, between the neck discomfort and two deflating putting weeks. He had five three-putts and one four-putt in Mexico City and three-putted six times throughout the week at Riviera. That's what held him back from serious contention during two strong ball-striking weeks, good enough for a T-15 at the Genesis and T-10 at the WGC-Mexico Championship. Woods also said that while the neck made it worse, the putting hadn't been great to begin with coming off a T-20 finish in his 2019 debut at Torrey Pines. "As my neck got a little bit tighter, yeah, I didn't feel comfortable with my putting. But my putting was uncomfortable going into that point. It just made it worse." Woods didn't look to be in any noticeable pain Tuesday morning. He teed off on No. 10 at 8 a.m. and was in control with the driver for most of the round. Woods, who switched putters several times last season, tees off at 1:27 p.m. Thursday afternoon with Patrick Reed and Webb Simpson. "The longer you play, we're all going to have patches where we just don't putt well and where we make everything," Woods said. "And I've had my share of runs where I've really played well."<doc-sep>
Tiger Woods has been struggling with his putting so far this season, particularly inside of 6 feet. Some of that, no doubt, has come from putting on poa annua grass in his three PGA Tour starts this season at Torrey Pines, Riviera and Club de Golf Chapultepec, where he three-putted six times on greens that confound a lot of elite players. However, Woods has seen some things he doesn't like in his putting stroke, and he's turned to Justin Thomas' putting coach, Matt Killen, to be a set of eyes. Killen was seen working with Woods on Monday at The Players Championship, and the 80-time PGA Tour winner continued to work with Killen on Tuesday at TPC Sawgrass. Woods, who first got to know Killen during the 2016 Ryder Cup in Minnesota, explained Tuesday this isn't the first time he and Killen have worked together. They've spent time together near Woods' home in Jupiter, Fla. Killen has worked with Thomas back into his amateur days, and Woods, who practices frequently with the 2017 PGA champion, has an affinity for turning toward guys who work with his regular practice buddies. After all, Killen has seen Woods' putting stroke enough times now to have a good understanding of his mechanics. Killen, a 32-year-old from Kentucky, also works with J.B. Holmes, whose putting was phenomenal down the stretch at Riviera, en route to a fifth PGA Tour title. At this point in the season, Woods would rank 80th in strokes gained putting if he'd logged enough rounds to qualify for the stat. Woods hasn't employed any kind of golf coach since ending his work with biomechanics expert Chris Como in 2017.