Camera-shy Tiger blocks out shattering shutters in Shanghai

By Nick Mulvenney

SHANGHAI (Reuters) - World number one Tiger Woods made a solid start to the WGC-HSBC Champions on Thursday despite the distraction of being pursued by a huge crowd of snap-happy locals following his every move.

Crowd behaviour has improved since Woods made his first appearance in China eight years ago, when stiletto-heel wearing fans charged across the greens in chaotic scenes at the Mission Hills club in Shenzhen.

It was clear on Thursday, however, that not everyone in the packed gallery following Woods in the opening round of his third tournament in Shanghai was familiar with the etiquette of watching golf.

"There's certainly a lot of people out there," Woods told reporters after shooting a five-under-par 67 to stand three shots behind early leader Nick Watney.

"There was a lot of people... moving and things. We had to stay focused.

"I think it's a disadvantage because there are so many people with cameras here. The other groups probably don't have to deal with it as much as we do."

PHOTO SEQUENCE

The problems started at Woods's opening hole when cameras clicked and whirred as the 14-times major champion played his first tee shot in front of more than a thousand spectators.