Tiger Woods went to the 14th tee box on the precipice of getting himself into the top 10.

Five frustrating holes later, Woods closed the 2018 Dell Technologies championship in a tie for 23rd.

Woods carded an even-par 71, finishing the second FedEx Cup playoff tournament nine strokes behind leader Bryson DeChambeau. He's 26th in the standings after two events.

The 14-time major winner spent most of his Monday getting from tee to green well before falling apart on the short grass. He played the first 13 holes at three under but missed a couple makable putts that would have had him at five or six under—though some of his birdie attempts were in understandable two-putt territory.

"I think in general here in the last probably month-and-a-half I've really turned the corner," Woods told reporters on Sunday. "I've really hit some good shots and I've really played well from tee to green. And it's just a matter of just getting one little hot stretch with the putter and get it rolling and get the momentum on my side and just get things rolling."

Woods is now 25th in the PGA Tour standings. Only the top 30 players in the FedEx Cup qualify for the year-end tournament, which is held in East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta.

Had Woods performed better Monday, he could have locked himself into the event and perhaps taken off next week's BMW Championship. This is the busiest stretch of golf Woods has played in a half decade. 

It's a good sign his body has held up to the wear and tear of three events in four weeks. Barring some sort of setback, it seems Woods is healthy after spending five years battling debilitating back problems that nearly ended his career.

Yet a return to the Tiger of old does not seem on the horizon. Woods played 13 holes of strong golf when he looked like a perennial contender if he could figure out his putter. 

The bogey at No. 14, which saw him miss a very makable par save from eight feet, and his tee shot into the drink at No. 16 that led to a double bogey undid all of that progress. Even toward the end of his prime, Woods' calling card was being consistent and finding par saves when others would bogey.

Now that he's clearly in the twilight of his career, Woods' mistakes compound themselves into larger miscues that undo entire rounds. Until he can mix in consistency with occasional flashes of brilliance, these forgettable outings are going to become the norm.