Admitting that losing a lunch bet to Lee is probably a more significant financial loss than the other way round, Hopewell is well placed to improve his Australian Open record that includes a T-10 last year.
The tournament, which will award three spots into the Saudi-backed circuit for the 2024 season, is a three-day, four-round qualifier beginning on December 8 in Abu Dhabi.
The frozen green certainly gave no leeway to this unfortunate soul who went from a solid birdie chance to searching for his ball in this northern Idaho version of an arctic tundra in the blink of an eye.
Former winner Cameron Davis, 16-year-old schoolgirl Rachel Lee and all-abilities champion Cameron Pollard sit atop the leaderboard, spearheading the local challenge to reclaim the three Australian Open titles swept by foreigners a year ago.
Woods is attempting to compete for the first time since he withdrew from the Masters midway through the third round. Two weeks after that early departure from Augusta National Golf Club, the Hall of Famer underwent fusion surgery on his right ankle.
The 45-year-old former world No.1 is Europe’s first repeat skipper since Bernard Gallacher rounded off his third successive captaincy with an unlikely triumph at Oak Hill in 1995.
Adopting a more aggressive approach to course management appears to have Adam Scott trending in the right direction as he aims for a second Australian Open to break a three-year winning drought.