Tiger Woods remains Golf's biggest draw despite barely featuring in competition this year. The 15-time Major Winner has delayed his comeback after pulling out of the Hero World Challenge in the Bahamas, but will fulfill his duties as the tournament host. The Golf Legend opened up on the sport's civil war in an exclusive conversation with WION Sports Editor Digvijay Singh Deo on the sidelines of the event.

Exclusive: Tiger Woods opens up on Golf's civil war

A battling Tiger Woods clawed his way out of early trouble to stay in the Masters hunt, carding a second round two-over 74 on a Friday as the wind gave him more problems than the right leg that he nearly lost in a career-threatening car crash.

World number one Scottie Scheffler was among the few to tame the challenging conditions, posting a 67 to seize control of the leaderboard and charging five clear of the field on eight-under 136.

With winds blowing across Augusta National, golfers were in full survival mode and none more so than Woods who took bogeys on four of his five opening holes, threatening to derail the comeback that has captivated golf fans around the world.

But the 46-year-old's famous fight surfaced in time to put him one-over heading into Saturday's third round and nine back of front-running Scheffler.

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"I got back in the ball game," said Woods. "I'm four shots back at second. That's the thing."

"But Scottie is running away with it right now."

"Tomorrow is going to be tough. It's going to be windy. It's going to be cool."

"It's going to be the Masters that I think the Masters Committee has been looking forward to for a number of years."

"We haven't had it like this. It's going to be exciting, and it's going to be fun for all of us."

With three wins in his last five PGA Tour starts, Scheffler showed why he is the hottest golfer on the planet taking a bogey on his first hole then going on to post the day's best round.

The 25-year-old American, even with a commanding five shot lead, cannot afford to get complacent being chased by trio of major winners including South Africa's Charl Schwartzel (69) the 2011 winner at Augusta National, Irishman Shane Lowry (68) the 2019 British Open winner, and defending Masters champion Hideki Matsuyama of Japan (69).

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Also five back is South Korea's Im Sung-jae (74), the first round overnight leader.

"There's still 50 guys in the field, something like that, I'm sure, and I can't worry about what those guys are doing," said Scheffler. "I'm just going to go out and play my game and just keep doing what I'm doing.

"Still quite a long way to go."

"It's nice to build up a little bit of a lead, but I'm not really going to be thinking about it tonight or anything."

As spectacular a round as Scheffler had it still was not enough to pry the spotlight away from Woods.

Playing his first competitive event in nearly 14 months Woods set the golf world alight on Thursday when he posted a one-under 71 to crank up expectations.

But the 46-year-old looked headed for an early exit when he stumbled to bogeys on four of his five opening holes, including three straight from the third.

Three-over walking onto the sixth tee and sliding dangerously close to the projected four-over cut line, Woods regrouped with nervy pars on six and seven before finally collecting his first birdie of the day at the eighth.

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The five-times Masters champion got his back nine off to a much brighter start than his outward nine, picking up a birdie at the 10th, then gave it right back at the infamous Amen Corner with bogeys at 11 and 12.

But as he has he has done so many times before on the Augusta back nine Woods would not surrender, hitting back with birdies at 13 and 14 before closing with four consecutive pars.

"Tomorrow is going to be an important day with as cool and as tough as they're predicting," said Woods. "It's going to be quick, and I need to go out there and put myself there.

"If you're within five or six on that back nine going into Sunday, you've got a chance. So I just need to get there."

A battling Tiger Woods clawed his way out of early trouble to stay in the Masters hunt, carding a second round two-over 74 on a Friday as the wind gave him more problems than the right leg that he nearly lost in a career-threatening car crash.

A battling Tiger Woods clawed his way out of early trouble to stay in the Masters hunt, carding a second round two-over 74 on a Friday as the wind gave him more problems than the right leg that he nearly lost in a career-threatening car crash. World number one Scottie Scheffler was among the few to tame the challenging conditions, posting a 67 to seize control of the leaderboard and charging five clear of the field on eight-under 136. With winds blowing across Augusta National, golfers were in full survival mode and none more so than Woods who took bogeys on four of his five opening holes, threatening to derail the comeback that has captivated golf fans around the world. But the 46-year-old's famous fight surfaced in time to put him one-over heading into Saturday's third round and nine back of front-running Scheffler. ALSO READ: Tiger Woods begins highly-anticipated return with opening par at Masters "I got back in the ball game," said Woods. "I'm four shots back at second. That's the thing." "But Scottie is running away with it right now." "Tomorrow is going to be tough. It's going to be windy. It's going to be cool." "It's going to be the Masters that I think the Masters Committee has been looking forward to for a number of years." "We haven't had it like this. It's going to be exciting, and it's going to be fun for all of us." With three wins in his last five PGA Tour starts, Scheffler showed why he is the hottest golfer on the planet taking a bogey on his first hole then going on to post the day's best round. The 25-year-old American, even with a commanding five shot lead, cannot afford to get complacent being chased by trio of major winners including South Africa's Charl Schwartzel (69) the 2011 winner at Augusta National, Irishman Shane Lowry (68) the 2019 British Open winner, and defending Masters champion Hideki Matsuyama of Japan (69). ALSO READ: 'I've got to play Wimbledon first': Serena Williams teases comeback after a year on the sidelines Also five back is South Korea's Im Sung-jae (74), the first round overnight leader. "There's still 50 guys in the field, something like that, I'm sure, and I can't worry about what those guys are doing," said Scheffler. "I'm just going to go out and play my game and just keep doing what I'm doing. "Still quite a long way to go." "It's nice to build up a little bit of a lead, but I'm not really going to be thinking about it tonight or anything." As spectacular a round as Scheffler had it still was not enough to pry the spotlight away from Woods. Playing his first competitive event in nearly 14 months Woods set the golf world alight on Thursday when he posted a one-under 71 to crank up expectations. But the 46-year-old looked headed for an early exit when he stumbled to bogeys on four of his five opening holes, including three straight from the third. Three-over walking onto the sixth tee and sliding dangerously close to the projected four-over cut line, Woods regrouped with nervy pars on six and seven before finally collecting his first birdie of the day at the eighth. ALSO READ: FIFA quashes rumours of changing length of matches for World Cup Qatar 2022 The five-times Masters champion got his back nine off to a much brighter start than his outward nine, picking up a birdie at the 10th, then gave it right back at the infamous Amen Corner with bogeys at 11 and 12. But as he has he has done so many times before on the Augusta back nine Woods would not surrender, hitting back with birdies at 13 and 14 before closing with four consecutive pars. "Tomorrow is going to be an important day with as cool and as tough as they're predicting," said Woods. "It's going to be quick, and I need to go out there and put myself there. "If you're within five or six on that back nine going into Sunday, you've got a chance. So I just need to get there."

Just going play my game: Tiger Woods 'proud' of himself after battling to stay in Masters hunt

Golf is continuing to come back to its feet following a prolonged break due to COVID-19 pandemic. On Sunday, Tiger Woods will be teaming up with Peyton Manning to lock horns against Phil Mickelson and Tom Brady in what will be a two-on-two charity match.&nbsp;

This will be a follow up to their clash in November 2018 as Woods, Mickelson and NFL quarterbacks gear up to raise funds for the COVID-19 pandemic relief work when they face off at The Match: Champions for Charity on Sunday.&nbsp;

The 18-hole made for television clash will be held at Woods’ home course at the Medalist Golf Club in Florida. Woods would be hoping to hit some form after the 15-time major winner returned with a disappointing 68th-place finish at the Genesis Invitational.

Mickelson had struggled earlier this and missed the cut in four of his five tour appearances before being victorious in his head-to-head match with Woods 18 months back.&nbsp;

Both Manning and Brady have not hyped their golf skills. While Manning last played with Woods at the 2005 Bay Hill Pro-Am and the 2009 Quail Hollow Championship, Manning has enjoyed his life on the course since retiring from NFL in 2016.&nbsp;

While the level of play in Sunday’s match may not be the best, but fans are eager to watch the iconic Woods in action.

Golf is continuing to come back to its feet following a prolonged break due to COVID-19 pandemic. On Sunday, Tiger Woods will be teaming up with Peyton Manning to lock horns against Phil Mickelson and Tom Brady in what will be a two-on-two charity match.

Golf is continuing to come back to its feet following a prolonged break due to COVID-19 pandemic. On Sunday, Tiger Woods will be teaming up with Peyton Manning to lock horns against Phil Mickelson and Tom Brady in what will be a two-on-two charity match. This will be a follow up to their clash in November 2018 as Woods, Mickelson and NFL quarterbacks gear up to raise funds for the COVID-19 pandemic relief work when they face off at The Match: Champions for Charity on Sunday. The 18-hole made for television clash will be held at Woods’ home course at the Medalist Golf Club in Florida. Woods would be hoping to hit some form after the 15-time major winner returned with a disappointing 68th-place finish at the Genesis Invitational. Mickelson had struggled earlier this and missed the cut in four of his five tour appearances before being victorious in his head-to-head match with Woods 18 months back. Both Manning and Brady have not hyped their golf skills. While Manning last played with Woods at the 2005 Bay Hill Pro-Am and the 2009 Quail Hollow Championship, Manning has enjoyed his life on the course since retiring from NFL in 2016. While the level of play in Sunday’s match may not be the best, but fans are eager to watch the iconic Woods in action.

Tiger Woods, Peyton Manning heavy favourites for charity match against Phil Mickelson, Tom Brady

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Exclusive: Tiger Woods opens up on Golf's civil war

Just going play my game: Tiger Woods 'proud' of himself after battling to stay in Masters hunt

Tiger Woods, Peyton Manning heavy favourites for charity match against Phil Mickelson, Tom Brady