Gullane, Scotland ? Tiger Woods already met his match at the British Open.

After finishing a practice round Monday morning before the wind began to whip off the Firth of Forth, Woods headed directly to the driving range. But he ran into a security guard who didn’t recognize him and didn’t see his credentials.

She threw her arms out and blocked him from going any farther until a member of Woods’ entourage intervened.

If only the rest of the field at Muirfield could stop him so easily. Woods has breezed to victory in the first two major championships of the year, winning the Masters by three strokes when no one mounted a charge, and winning the U.S. Open by the same margin despite closing with a 2-over-par 72.

That made him the first player since Jack Nicklaus in 1972 to win the first two legs of the Grand Slam, and favorite to win all four majors in the same year.

The next test if one even unfolds starts Thursday at Muirfield, the East Lothian links which is short by modern championship standards (7,034 yards) but is regarded as one of the most complete tests among courses in the British Open rotation.

“It’s a fair test,” said Nick Faldo, who won the silver claret jug in 1987 and 1992, the last two times the British Open was played at Muirfield. “If you play well, you’ll score well.”

That’s what is expected from Woods, who hasn’t hit a competitive shot since he tapped in a bogey putt on the 72nd hole at Bethpage Black in New York last month.

Still, there are no guarantees in golf, and Woods was taking nothing for granted.

He has spent two days at Muirfield, working on a variety of shots and paying close attention from the tee. He rarely hit a driver Monday, even on the par 5s, and concentrated on how far the ball would roll and what was required to avoid the bunkers.