Tiger Woods has been away from the PGA Tour too long to know for certain when a shot is as good as it looks.

This was a 6-iron on the par-3 16th hole on the South Course at Torrey Pines, from 188 yards to a slightly elevated green with a pin tucked behind a deep bunker. The sun was setting behind the Pacific late Thursday afternoon, and the glare made it tough to follow the flight of the ball.

“We can’t see anything land from back there, so we’re just listening for some noise,” Woods said. “And people started cheering.”

The ball rolled to the hole and broke a few inches in front of the cup, leading to a tap-in birdie.

Woods brought big crowds back to golf in his latest return to the PGA Tour, and he even produced a few big roars.

Playing for the first time since recovering from a fourth back surgery that cost him another year on the PGA Tour, Woods was mostly steady, sometimes spectacular and ended his day with an even-par 72 that left him seven shots behind Tony Finau.

“It was fun to compete again,” Woods said. “It was fun to be out there.”

The next trick is to stay at Torrey Pines beyond Friday. With virtually no wind making this a day for reasonable scoring, Woods was tied for 84th and will start the second round on the North Course just outside the cut line.

Finau birdied his opening two holes on the North and finished with a 35-foot birdie putt for a 65.

Woods had a few big moments that looked familiar to fans who stood as many as four-deep around the greens.

His three birdie putts were from a combined 30 inches. The longest of his birdie putt was from just inside 2 feet on No. 10 that got him back to even par for the round.

He was never under par the entire round, and his near ace on the 16th brought him back to even par.

LPGA Tour: Brooke Henderson shot a bogey-free 5-under 68 in windy conditions to take the first-round lead in the season-opening Bahamas LPGA Classic at Paradise Island.

“We did a really good job of hitting balls pin-high, and I don’t know how we did it,” Henderson said about caddie and sister, Brittany. “It’s hard to judge wind sometimes, but I feel like we calculated everything really well.”

The 20-year-old Canadian had four birdies in a seven-hole stretch and closed with three pars on the gusty Ocean Club layout.

Australia’s Sarah Jane Smith finished with a bogey to drop into a tie for second with Spanish rookie Luna Sobron Galmes. Top-ranked Shanshan Feng birdied her last for a 70.

Danielle Kang also was at 70 with Lindsey Weaver, Katherine Kirk, Jing Yan and Maria Torres, the tour’s first player from Puerto Rico.

Lexi Thompson, a playoff loser to Brittany Lincicome last year, opened with a 72.

Michelle Wie eagled the par-5 11th in a 73, and playing partners Lincicome and third-ranked So Yeon Ryu followed at 74.

European Tour: Jamie Donaldson flirted with a 59 before settling for a 10-under 62 in the first round of the Dubai Desert Classic.

In perfect scoring conditions at the Emirates Golf Club, the 42-year-old took a one-shot lead over Anthony Wall and David Horsey. Rory McIlroy was among five players at 65.