The Open: Errant shot from Tiger Woods narrowly misses fans

Tiger Woods came within inches of causing a nasty injury to spectators as he found trouble early in his second round at The Open.

Woods, who opened with a level-par 71 on day one at Carnoustie, began his second round with a cast-iron par before blocking his drive way right into the rough from the next tee.

His ball held on a bank to leave him an awkward stance with the ball significantly above his feet, and he appeared to have little option but to pitch back into the fairway.

But the bravado in Woods led him to attempt an ambitious route to the green, and asked the marshals to move the galleries back to give him a direct line.

However, Woods did not make the contact he desired and sent his ball low and towards the fans, who recoiled and ducked for cover with a collision looking inevitable.

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Fortunately, the ball veered left in the air and missed everyone, and his errant play would ultimately result in a bogey-five which saw him slip to one over par for the tournament.

Watch the video above to see how Woods sent the crowd scattering on the second hole at Carnoustie. And don't miss extensive live coverage of The 147th Open through to Sunday evening on Sky Sports The Open.