( CNN ) -- Old habits die hard . When asked what would represent an acceptable finish at his first major for nearly a year Tiger Woods replied : `` First . It 's always the case . '' Such are the standards of a player who sits on 14 career majors , just four shy of the greatest of all time Jack Nicklaus . Woods might be ring rusty after his four-month injury layoff but the swales and hollows of Royal Liverpool will be familiar to him when the British Open starts on Thursday . The world No . 7 bossed the field the last time the Open was held at Hoylake , romping to a five shot victory in 2006 . But after going six years without victory in a major championship , the 38 year old acknowledges he contends in a different playing field these days . `` It gets harder every year because the field gets deeper , '' he told reporters . `` Guys coming out here are bigger , stronger , faster and more athletic . `` When I first started I think I averaged around 296 yards ( in driving distance ) . `` I walked with Gary Woodland on Sunday and he said he has finally found a driver and ball combo that he can hit 320 yards through the air . The game has changed a lot . '' Woods returned to competitive action on the PGA Tour in June after a spell on the sidelines having had surgery on a back injury . He failed to make the cut at Congressional but has undoubted pedigree when it comes to the British Open . Aside from a missed cut at Turnberry in 2009 , Woods has n't finished outside the top 23 in the last eight incarnations of golf 's oldest major , adding two more wins to his first in 2000 . He famously strolled to victory at Hoylake in 2006 using his driver just once in four rounds as the course baked in the face of a heatwave . `` It feels great to come back to Hoylake , '' Woods said after completing a full practice round . `` I 'm at three Opens and hopefully , I can get more than that . `` There have been a couple of changes and overall the golf course is a little softer than '06 . `` I have played three practice rounds now and had three different winds which has been helpful to see the course in different conditions . `` It was hot , the ball was flying and it was very dusty in 2006 . Now we are making ball marks on the green . `` On Saturday it was running and fast but on Sunday with the rain balls were checking and it played longer . Today the greens were faster and very close to game speed . ''
Tiger Woods preparing for his first major championship in nearly a year . The 14-time major champion returns to scene of his 2006 British Open triumph . World no . 7 recently returned to action after a four-month layoff with a back injury . Woods admits major titles are getting harder to win due to deeper fields .