Tiger Woods Roars- The first US$1 billion dollar Sportsman
Tiger Woods becomes first athlete with US$1bil in earnings
NEW YORK: Forbes says Tiger Woods has become the first athlete to surpass US$1 billion in career earnings.
The magazine estimates that golf’s top-ranked player crested the plateau when he earned US$10 million for winning the FedEx Cup on Sunday.
Forbes reported on its Web site on Tuesday that Woods entered 2009 having earned US$895 million since he joined the PGA Tour in 1996.
Prize money, appearance fees, endorsement fees, bonuses and his golf course design business were calculated to have pushed him over US$1 billion.
The magazine says former NBA great Michael Jordan and former Formula One driver Michael Schumacher, at US$800 million and US$700 million, respectively, are Woods’ closest competition in career earnings. - AP
Source: http://thestar.com.my/sports/story.asp?file=/2009/10/5/sports/20091005122124&sec=sports
Showing posts with label tiger woods. Show all posts
Showing posts with label tiger woods. Show all posts
Monday, October 5, 2009
The First US$1 billion Dollar Sportsman
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Picture of the Day
"Love is in the air" - Tiger Woods kisses his son Charlie Axel Woods, born on Feb 8, 2009. What a great picture! I can feel your love 2 your son, man!! Can Charlie be the next Tiger Woods? Wait 20 years and you'll know. :)
Monday, September 28, 2009
Tiger Wins US$10 million jackpot, yet not very satisfied!
"US$10 million Fedex Cup" - Woods won the Fedex Cup though finishing second in The Tour Championship (thats the reason he's not very happy now). Lesson of the day: "Set your standard high, do your best and you'll be happy even if the outcome is not as expected."
Mickelson's back in the Tiger hunt
ATLANTA - He'd won the war and secured the $10 million booty, yet Tiger Woods could only focus on having lost the battle to a resurgent Phil Mickelson.
"Yeah, it was a strange feeling, a little bit deflating," Woods admitted Sunday after being presented with the FedEx Cup for finishing second at East Lake.
"It feels certainly not like it did a couple years ago when I won the tournament by seven, eight shots, whatever it was.
"I think it's just one of those things where obviously, I'm a little disappointed.
"I'm sure I'll probably be more happy tomorrow than I am right now."
Mickelson, on the other hand, couldn't wipe the smile from his face after emerging from the wilderness — he hadn't contended anywhere since the U.S. Open — to win The Tour Championship by three strokes in emphatic fashion.
"I like the way today went," said Mickelson mischievously, "I was two back of him, I beat him by three, he gets the $10 million check and I get $1 million."
He was joking, if only in that he actually received $1.35 million for winning the tournament and an additional $3 million for finishing second in the FedEx Cup.
What this final day of the golf season amounted to was — like a shocking plot twist on the last page of a potboiler — the tantalising specter of a Tiger versus Phil showdown next year.
Woods, who is a prohibitive favorite to win this year's POY award with six wins — three more than Mickelson and Steve Stricker — might have something to say about that. Given that in his 13 years he's only twice not won the award when he's played the full season.
But it's true that Mickelson's looking forward to 2010 now that his wife, Amy, and his mother both seem to be in the clear after breast cancer scares.
"I'm very proud of my wife and my mom on the fight that they've been through, and we've been fortunate in the long term. We're in good shape," he said.
"I'm excited to get 2009 behind me and look forward to 2010."
Mickelson's turnaround came after a suggestion from his caddie, Jim "Bones" MacKay, that he consult two-time PGA champion Dave Stockton, a man many consider the world's foremost putting guru.
"I said, 'Bones, for two years I've been kind of floundering here, not having the right direction.'"
Stockton happened to be in Mickelson's native San Diego and the two worked together for two days a couple of weeks ago.
Stockton told him the opposite of what Mickelson had long been hearing: that he presses his hands too far forward when he putts. Stockton told him it was the best way to putt. "Once he said that, I said, 'Yeah, that's right, I've always believed that.' So I went right back to it and it's been a night-and-day difference for me."
The proof of the pudding's in the eating and Mickelson finished first in putts per green hit in regulation at East Lake.
In shooting the only bogey-free round Sunday, a memorable 65 that could've been even better, Mickelson had one-putted eight straight holes after saving par from the greenside bunker on the 10th.
An even more remarkable statistic is that after making only 13 putts from over 20 feet all year, he made six this week.
"I'm excited because I feel I have some direction now on where I want to go with my putter," he said.
"I felt like I've been hitting it this well for quite some time since working with Butch (Harmon), and yet I have not had the results.
"My play has been like this for two years. I'll have some good weeks where I'll putt well, and I've won a couple tournaments each year. But it hasn't been as consistently solid on the greens as I expect or as it has been in the past. So that's why I'm excited now."
Woods, on the other hand, had flashbacks of Hazeltine, where nothing would fall for him. He needed 30 putts Sunday for an even-par round of 70, five more than Mickelson, and finished the week 22nd in putts made per green in regulation, a tale of woe given that there were only 30 players in the field.
"I hit the ball well enough to make a few more birdies, and I just didn't make any putts this week from about 10 to 20 feet. I mised a lot of putts," he said.
Despite Sunday's disappointment, he did manage to find some consolation in the bigger picture.
"Nine top twos this year, I certainly wouldn't have expected that going into my first event, the Match Play (in February), to end up where I'm at right now," he said.
"The FedEx Cup is something very similar to what you have for Player of the Year. It's a cumulative total and something that you have to be consistent the entire year, and it's something that I was."
Woods betrayed his only real regret when he said, rather wistfully, "wish I could've got a major in there." (lol)
In the end, however, even Mickelson conceded the FedEx Cup went to the right man.
"I didn't play well the first three FedEx Cup events. I don't deserve to win the entire FedEx Cup just based on one tournament win," he said, "It's got to be based on all four, so the way it worked out ... the best player won."
Friday, September 25, 2009
It's very simple; you always help your friends
"Happy Family" - We all should have one :)Lesson of the day by Tiger Woods:
"It's very simple; you always help your friends," Woods said.
"Sean is a friend of mine, and like all my friends, you always try to make their life better somehow. That's the whole idea of having friends in your life.
"Sean has been struggling a little bit on the greens this year, and I thought I could offer a little bit of help and insight into how he could change that, and now, as I said, I'm going to go chew him out."
Another quote by Messilegend: "In everyone I meet, I learn something."
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Tiger's advice to O'Hair comes back to bite him
The 27-year-old arrived in Atlanta not feeling especially confident, particularly in a putting stroke that has always been suspect.
And then on Wednesday he played nine holes with Tiger Woods and received the tip that would help him get to the top of the leaderboard after the first round of The Tour Championship at East Lake.
"I'm not even close to doing exactly what he's told me to do," O'Hair said after his 4-under-par 66.
"But I truly believe in what he said, and I think it's the key for me to kind of take my putting to another level because, let's face it, that's kind of what's held me back for a long time."
O'Hair had 28 putts — one fewer than Woods on the day — including a 56-footer and six others longer than 6 feet to capitalize on an excellent ball-striking display.
But what impressed O'Hair more than Woods' keen eye for the mechanics of the putting stroke was his generosity of spirit.
"Getting advice from basically the greatest of all time is pretty cool," O'Hair said.
"But I think the thing that impresses me more is the quality of guy he is. I mean, I'm his competition, and for him to help me out like he did was very classy, I thought."
Woods, who rebounded from a sluggish start to finish at 3-under, one shot back of O'Hair, made light of the help he'd offered, saying he was "going to go chew him out right now."
But later he conceded it was just about helping friends.
"It's very simple; you always help your friends," Woods said.
"Sean is a friend of mine, and like all my friends, you always try to make their life better somehow. That's the whole idea of having friends in your life.
"Sean has been struggling a little bit on the greens this year, and I thought I could offer a little bit of help and insight into how he could change that, and now, as I said, I'm going to go chew him out."
Probably not an idle threat given that Woods, as O'Hair has noted in the past, is a world-class "ball buster"; high praise considering O'Hair is from Philly, where breaking huevos has been elevated to an art form.
Woods was playful and relaxed after his round, but his disposition might have been different if the indifference of his first eight holes had continued.
Woods had birdied the third hole from 5 feet but missed three other putts of between 10 and 15 feet to stumble to 1-over through eight holes.
O'Hair, meanwhile, had rattled off five birdies against no blemishes to his card through his first 12 holes to lead Woods by six.
It seemed things would get worse for Woods when he miscalculated a chip on the relatively benign ninth hole, leaving himself with a birdie putt of just over 10 feet. The putt fell, and he said it turned his fortunes.
"I had just bogeyed six and eight and missed a short one there for bidie at seven, and it was nice to get one on nine," he said, "That chip came out a little warmer than I thought, and I didn't want to miss an opportunity there to make birdie. It's one of the very few birdie holes we have out there."
After that, Woods sailed home in 32, the lowest score recorded by anyone in the 30-man field on the exacting back nine.
"I felt if I just shot under par for the day, I'd be fine," he said, "There aren't going to be a lot of guys under par.
"With this golf course, you have to be very patient, especially with greens this firm."
Woods joined a chorus of players in expressing surprise at how hard the putting surfaces are at East Lake given the heavy rains that have flooded the Atlanta area.
A "sub-air" drying system has been installed beneath the greens, allowing them to absorb the deluge without ruining their playability.
"Sub-air, it's amazing what it can do," Woods said. "If you look at some of these greens, it looks like they were in a drought. They're browned out."
Woods said the second round would be tricky because the pin positions would be much more challenging than they were Thursday.
"You've got to be very cautious going in there, because it's very easy to skip over the back, and you've got these down-grain, muffled lies where it's really hard to control what you're doing."
O'Hair, meanwhile, knows that he'll have to keep playing well, especially with Woods lurking, to get his hands on the $10 million FedEx Cup prize money, which would more than soothe the sting of his losses last week in Philly.
"The thing I've learned is that you have to go out there and play good golf," O�Hair said, "You're not going to play average golf against him and do anything worthwhile."
Source/ read more here: http://msn.foxsports.com/golf/story/10121688/Tiger's-advice-to-O'Hair-comes-back-to-bite-him
Monday, September 14, 2009
For every competition, I enter to WIN
"For every competition, I enter with an expectation to win! " Thats basically sum up the frame of mind of Tiger Woods as well as other top athletes like Rafael Nadal, Lin Dan and a world champion from our own country, Nicol David.
Tiger's latest victory more or less ensured him the title of Player of the Year 2009. A victory margin of 8 shots over his nearest rivals, Tiger is without doubt back to his greatest form! As Tiger says it best, "Absolutely, it's one of my best years."
"red spells luck" - Always in the red on the final day.----------
Tiger: 'It's one of my best years'
LEMONT, Ill. - Mark Leishman had unleashed a furious drive, emasculating the 600-yard par-5 ninth at Cog Hill, then stuck a flawless 4-iron which left the amiable young Aussie with an eagle putt.
Tiger Woods, meanwhile, was in trouble.
He'd blocked his drive about 60 yards to the right of the tree-lined fairway.
From an unpalatable lie, Woods somehow threaded a low 3-iron through the trees but his ball rolled too far, stopping beneath a tree on the other side of the fairway.
"I thought, 'I might be able to get one or two up on him here, maybe put a little bit of pressure on him'," said Leishman. "Maybe this could get back to four (shots)."
From 109 yards, Woods hit a low 9-iron from under the tree with just the right amount of hook spin. It landed 50 yards short of the green, scurried up the slope, ran onto the putting surface and stopped 15 feet behind the pin.
It was, by estimation, an exquisite play.
"When he hit that shot, I actually just started laughing, it was such a good shot," said Leishman. "He didn't really need it, but he needed it to keep a big lead."
Leishman promptly missed his putt, tapping in for birdie, and Woods, as is his wont, made 4, too.
"Nice halve," joked Woods, his seven-shot lead preserved.
His 71st victory on the Tour was all but guaranteed when he had started the final round of the BMW Championship seven shots ahead with only perhaps the ghosts of Hazeltine and the final-round failure at the PGA Championship to exorcise.
As Brandt Snedeker — who heartbreakingly four-putted from 12 feet on the last hole when two putts would've gotten him into the Tour Championship — said the night before, Woods would need to have a heart attack for anyone else to win this event.
But his heart was strong and Woods finished with a 3-under-par 68 — a round marked by solid if unspectacular play, a breathtaking eagle on the par-5 15th apart — which was good enough for an eight-stroke margin of victory. It was the 10th time he's won by eight shots or more and the first since the Buick Invitational at Torrey Pines last year.
"To play as well as I have of late and not get the W's has been a little bit frustrating, no doubt, because I've been so close," said Woods of his second-place finishes at the PGA and The Barclays.
"It's just been a matter of making a couple putts here and there ... and, lo and behold, boom! I hit the ball just as well, just as consistent this week, and I made a few putts. That's how it happens."
Now that he's earned his sixth win — and goes into the Tour Championship at Atlanta's East Lake in two weeks as the top FedEx Cup point earner and prohibitive favorite — Woods declared this comeback season among the best of his career.
"Absolutely, it's one of my best years," he said, "There's no doubt about that.
"I haven't won as many times as I did in 2000, didn't win any majors this year, but I've never had a year where I've been this consistent."
"To have, as I said, an opportunity just about every time I tee it up to win the championship on the back nine, I can't tell you how proud I am."
At first glance, the statement seems like a stretch, but in Woods' mind it's not as he gives this year added weight because of the uncertainty surrounding his rebuilt knee. He wasn't sure whether it could stand up to the pressure of golf's most high-octane swing.
"Most sports you come back after what I had and usually they strap a brace on you and you go play your sport," he said, "I can't swing in a brace on my left leg. That does more harm than good."
"There were so many uncertainties at the beginning of the season. What kind of shots could I play? How was my recovery going to be from day-to-day? Am I going to hurt again? Am I going to stretch out this graft?
"To come off a knee surgery and to have this type of year, to be this consistent, is something that I've very proud of."
The victory has made him, or it should have, a lock for Player of the Year.
"I'd say my name is up there on the list," said Woods.
Only Steve Stricker, with three, has more than two wins. After rounds of 68-67-62 — a course record by four shots at the stretched-out Cog Hill — and 68, Woods' adjusted scoring average for this year is 68.06, a whopping three shots a round better than the Tour average.
Stricker is second, 1.26 shots behind Woods; a deficit which translates to 5 shots per tournament.
Some of Woods' more recent foes fared equally poorly. He beat Y.E. Yang, the PGA champion, for instance, by 32 strokes, an average of eight per round.
Woods is now just two wins behind Jack Nicklaus on the all-time list. After that there's only Sam Snead's 82 to chase.
But consider that Snead and Nicklaus were both 42 when they won their 71st tournaments, nine years older than Woods.
"It feels good," Woods said before heading back to Florida for a few well-earned days of rest and relaxation.
"Winning, that's the ultimate goal."
http://msn.foxsports.com/golf/story/10061204/Tiger-coasts-to-a-runaway-victory
Monday, August 17, 2009
Tiger Sla-YIN by YANG
South Korean YE Yang won his first career major with a superb performance to beat Tiger Woods fair and square. Even though Tiger lost, its not all bad news. Yang totally deserved the victory which will be remembered by many Asians especially the Koreans. Clearly, Tiger's lacklustre putting throughout the final round denied him from winning his 15th major. An eagle on the short par 4, 14th hole seems to be the "signal/indication" of victory for Yang, although Tiger managed to birdie the hole and stayed one stroke behind. If only Tiger managed to birdie the first and second hole, both with good opportunity at less than 10 foots, the game would certainly be different. Credits to be honoured to Yang for ending a remarkable final round with 2-under and an overall score of 8-under par to win the PGA Championship by three strokes. Chuka Haeyo!!!
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Yang stuns Tiger at PGA Championship
CHASKA, Minn. - South Korea's Y.E. Yang toppled Tiger Woods and became the first Asian-born man to win a major with a stunning performance Sunday in the PGA Championship, memorable as much for his clutch shots as the player he beat.
In a year of spoilers at the majors, Yang's was the most surprising of all.
Woods was 14-0 when he went into the final round of a major atop the leaderboard. He had not lost any tournament around the world in nine years when leading by two shots.
None of that mattered to Yang, a 37-year-old Korean who hit the shots everyone expected from Woods. Leading by one on the final hole, Yang slayed golf's giant with a hybrid 3-iron that cleared the bunker and settled 12 feet from the cup.
Yang made the birdie putt and shouted with joy as he pumped his fist. That gave him a 2-under 70, and a three-shot victory when Woods missed yet another short par putt and shot 75.
"I tried to master the art of controlling my emotions throughout the small wins I had in my career," Yang said through his agent, Michael Yim. "I think it turned out quite well today."
Yang finished at 8-under 280 and won $1.35 million, along with a five-year exemption on the PGA Tour and the majors. That was important for a guy who had to go back to PGA Tour qualifying last December. The last player to go from Q-school to PGA champion was John Daly in 1991.
One more bonus: His victory put him on the International team for the Presidents Cup in October in San Francisco.
His victory is massive for Asia, the fastest-growing market in golf. Perhaps even more significant is the way he stood up to Woods, the world's No. 1 player whose heritage is half-Asian through his Thai-born mother.
His victory came four days after golf was recommended to become part of the Olympics in 2016.
For Woods, it was the second time he has finished runner-up in the PGA Championship at Hazeltine, both times to a surprise winner. Seven years ago, he birdied the last four holes and came up one short of Rich Beem.
This time, Woods made one mistake after another over the last four holes, mostly with his putter.
"I did everything I needed to do, except for getting the ball in the hole," Woods said. "Just didn't make the putts when I needed to make them."
Yang was No. 110 in the world, his only victory on the PGA Tour coming in March at the Honda Classic, on a course across the street from headquarters of the PGA of America. He was best known for holding off Woods at the HSBC Champions in China three years ago.
This stage was far bigger. Yang was even better.
He took the lead for the first time all week by chipping in for eagle from about 20 yards short of the 14th green. And when it looked as though nerves were getting the best of him on a three-putt bogey at the 17th, he delivered his two most important shots.
Yang still had enough strength left to hoist his golf bag over his head, and later the 44-pound Wanamaker Trophy. After a long and tearful embrace with his wife, Young Ju Park, he walked across a bridge saluting thousands of fans who couldn't believe what they saw.
What a finale to this year in the majors.
Kenny Perry was poised to become the oldest Masters champion at 48 until Angel Cabrera beat him in a playoff. Phil Mickelson, reeling from his wife being diagnosed with breast cancer, was on the verge of finally winning the U.S. Open until Lucas Glover outplayed him over the final few holes. And just last month, 59-year-old Tom Watson was an 8-foot par putt away from winning the British Open, then lost in a playoff to Stewart Cink.
Woods losing a two-shot lead in the final round of a major? That was unthinkable - until a breezy afternoon at Hazeltine.
"I played well enough the entire week to win the championship," Woods said. "You have to make putts. I didn't do that. Today was a day that didn't happen."
Before Yang, Asian-born players had come close in the majors - Lu Liang-huan of Taiwan finishing one shot behind Lee Trevino at the 1971 British Open, and T.C. Chen's famous two-chip gaffe that cost him a chance at the 1985 U.S. Open, where he was runner-up to Andy North.
This could be a big breakthrough for Asian players, especially with a World Golf Championship starting this year in China.
As for the PGA Championship, what remains is whether it will be remembered more for Yang's victory or Woods losing a 54-hole lead for the first time in a major.
Source: http://msn.foxsports.com/golf/story/9945884?GT1=39002
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S. Korea celebrates 'Average Joe's' major win
SEOUL: Fans in golf-crazy South Korea set their alarms for 4am Monday to watch the PGA Championship on television, then celebrated with whoops as Y.E. Yang finished off his historic victory over Tiger Woods.
Yang became the first Asian-born man to win a major tournament, capping a stunning rise for an “average Joe” who didn’t pick up a golf club until he was 19 and went into the tournament ranked 110th in the world.
Kim Soo-mi woke up before dawn to watch the final round on TV, and then scurried over to her local sports club when it opened at 6am to watch the final minutes along with jubilant fellow golfers.
“Seeing Yang ranked 110th in the world win against Tiger Woods, the best player in the world, I felt so proud to be a Korean today,” Kim said at the club in the Seoul suburb of Bundang.
Even South Korea’s president, Lee Myung-bak, was up before sunrise to watch the tournament live. He later phoned Yang to offer his congratulations.
“I woke up at dawn today to watch the broadcast, and you played in a calm manner,” Lee told Yang, according to Lee’s office. “First of all, you enhanced our people’s morale by winning the major title for the first time as an Asian.”
Lee also praised Yang for persevering despite personal difficulties, calling his win a “come-from-behind victory” that was all the more valuable because of his life story, Lee’s office said.
Back home in Jeju, Yang’s family stayed up all night, their eyes glued to the TV. “I am so happy and proud of him. What else can I feel?” his brother, Yang Yong-hyuk, said by telephone. “Since he has finally reached the peak, I hope that he will work even harder to become better and defend his position.”
Yang, whose Korean name is Yang Yong-eun, calls himself an “average Joe,” the son of a farmer on the tropical southern island of Jeju - a traditional honeymoon spot for Koreans that in recent years has become a popular golfing destination.
Yang says he aspired to be a bodybuilder and once dreamed of owning his own gym. But a knee injury in his teens forced him to reconsider his athletic career. At 19, he took a job collecting golf balls at a local driving range.
After work, the self-taught Yang stayed on after hours to practice, said Kim Young-chan, executive director of the driving range at the Ora Country Club. He recalled Yang as a late bloomer but a hard worker.
“After the guests left the driving range, he practised late into the night,” Kim said in a telephone interview, calling his diligence a “testament to how hard he worked” to learn the game.
Yang was awarded the Rookie of the Year award after making his Korea Professional Golfers’ Association debut in 1997. It took him nearly six years to win his first title in South Korea. Then, in 2006, he took on Tiger Woods at the HSBC Championship in Shanghai, China - and won.
Suh Gee-young, a doctor who woke up early to watch the tournament and take a few practice swings before work, called Yang an inspiration to other Asian-born players seeking to make it big in the majors. Golf is huge in South Korea, which in recent years has produced a number of top female players. But the top ranks had until now evaded Asia’s men.
“I think Yang’s victory will give young Asian players a confidence that they can beat the odds in any situation,” Suh said.
Golf instructor Kim Won-jun, 43, praised Yang as a calm, collected player.
“I personally know Yang and what distinguishes him from other players is his emotional stability,” Kim said. “He is in total control during his game so when he has the chance, he’s able to immediately seize it.”
Around Kim, dozens of early risers were taking swings at the Kolon Sporex club’s indoor driving range as others gathered around a nearby large-screen TV to watch replays of Yang’s win in Chaska, Minn.
Lee Jong-hoon, 33, said chatter about Yang’s victory filled the halls of the Seoul hospital where he is a physician.
“I’m a fan of Yang because he overcame many obstacles to become a golfer,” Lee said. “I think what makes his victory especially meaningful is not only the fact that he’s Asian but also the fact that he was a true underdog.” - AP
Sunday, August 16, 2009
15th major for Tiger Woods?
Tiger Woods is set to win his 15th major championship tomorrow after a defensive play today with one-under par and an overall 8-under par going into the final round. His game is definitely below my expectation where the chasing packs managed to outperform him with three to five under pars. Nevertheless, Tiger is still leading with two shots over defending champion P.Harrington and South Korean YE Yang. With the expected huge crowds of over 40,000 to follow right behind Tiger, it would be a major psychological test for YE Yang. P.Harrington would be the best player, imo, to challenge Tiger for the championship. More so after he is not paired with Tiger for the last 18 holes (u know what i meant). Being the defending champion, I think he should be paired with Tiger instead of Yang who settled with the best score of five-under 67 in the third round. All in all, my bet is still on Tiger to capture his 5th US PGA Championship title at Hazeltine to make it his 15th career major titles! As Robert Lusetich says it best, "He is, unequivocally, the greatest front-runner in sports."
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Woods has lead to himself at PGA Championship
CHASKA, Minn. (AP) - Tiger Woods was one round away from winning another major but he squandered a four-shot lead and drew more company than he wanted at the U.S. PGA Championship on Saturday.
Woods played so-so on another windy afternoon at Hazeltine National until his lead was gone. Only at the end of the day did he find some solace. One birdie on the back nine was enough for a 1-under 71. It gave him a two-shot lead over three-time major champion Padraig Harrington and Y.E. Yang.
Woods has never lost a major when leading going into the final round.
Only once in his career has he lost any tournament when leading by two shots or more.
"I played conservatively today," Woods said. "I didn't give myself a lot of looks. I was lag putting a lot. The only putt I really missed was on the three-putt. Other than that, it was a good, solid day.
"Given the conditions and my position in the tournament, I didn't mind it."
He was at 8-under 208, finishing just as the rain arrived.
Harrington surged into a share of the lead with four birdies over an eight-hole span in the middle of the round, catching Woods with a 7-foot birdie putt on the short par-4 14th. Right when it appeared they would be paired in the final round for the second straight week, Harrington made his only bogey of the round by going over the 18th green and failing to save par.
He wound up with a 69, and much greater hopes of defending his U.S. PGA title than he had starting the day.
"The narrower the gap, the better," Harrington said. "If I have to take four shots and I've taken two the first day, I suppose we're halfway there. Obviously, to get a win, you've got to beat him by three tomorrow. That's a tall order. But as I said, everybody in the situation who is behind is going to think, 'Well, we have nothing to lose.' You've got to have that attitude."
Woods will play in the final group with Yang, who matched the best round of the tournament with a 67. Yang won his first U.S. PGA Tour event this year at the Honda Classic, although the 37-year-old from South Korea was better known for taking down Woods at the HSBC Champions in China three years ago.
They weren't playing in the same group in 2006, however. And this will be Yang's first time contending in a major.
"It will be my first time playing with him, so I'll try not to go over par," he said with a smile. "But I've been looking forward to it. I've thought about playing with Tiger recently. Surprised it came true so fast."
Woods' four-shot lead was his largest in a major after 36 holes since he led by five at St. Andrews in 2005. Just like that British Open, his margin was cut to two shots going into the final round.
Suddenly, there are other challengers to try to stop Woods from winning his 15th career major, and first of the year.
Henrik Stenson, who captured The Players Championship in May, had a 68 and was in the group at 4-under 212 along with U.S. Open champion Lucas Glover (71).
Ernie Els pulled within one shot of the lead until he finished with three straight bogeys, leaving him with a 70 and five shots behind. He was disgusted with the end of his round, although the Big Easy spoke for so many others about the outlook on Sunday.
"You could really feel that there's a real championship going on around you," Els said. "It's not a runaway deal. Looked like a runaway thing at the end of yesterday. But it looks like the guys are really set to give Tiger a go, and the crowd could sense that."
Woods, however, has a major advantage.
He has never lost in America when leading by more than one shot, and the only time anyone beat him from that position was Ed Fiori at the 1996 Quad City Classic, when Woods was a 20-year-old playing his third event as a pro.
Lee Westwood came from two shots behind to beat Woods in the Deutsche Bank-SAP Open in Germany in 2000.
Woods appeared to be on his way when he stuffed a short iron into 4 feet for birdie on the second hole. Then came a three-putt bogey on the par-3 fourth, and he aimed away from trouble, not willing to give away shots.
"I thought it was going to be playing a little bit more difficult today, but it wasn't," Woods said. "I just felt that with my lead, I erred on the side of caution most of the time. If I did have a good look at it, I took aim right at it. Otherwise, I was just dumping the ball on the green and two-putting."
The lead shrank quickly.
Glover pulled within two shots until he was slowed by a poor bunker shot on No. 10.
Harrington made his second straight birdie with a 20-foot putt on the par-3 eighth, rolled in a 6-foot birdie on the 11th and made a few solid par saves along the way to stay close to Woods. He caught him at the 14th, then tried to get to the clubhouse without any damage. He almost made it, but caught a flyer out of the rough and over the 18th green.
Woods wasted opportunities, and appeared to really blow a good chance when he drove just through the par-4 14th. His chip came out hot and through the green, against the collar. Unable to hit a proper chip or a putt, he used the blade of his sand wedge to roll the ball some 15 feet to the cup. It came out perfectly, and Woods showed fierce emotion when it fell for birdie. (his Strong fist pump is like a hint that he is going to win this tournament!)
Over his last hour, however, he couldn't wait to get off the course. Still, he wound up with the lead, and Woods wasn't about to trade that position with anyone.
Source: http://msn.foxsports.com/golf/story/9937046/Woods-has-lead-to-himself-at-PGA-Championship
Friday, August 14, 2009
Tiger Is Well-Positioned To Win His First Major of De Year
Can anyone catch Tiger if he's playing this well?
CHASKA, Minn. - At 1:14 on a steamy Thursday afternoon in the suburbs of the Twin Cities, Tiger Woods took the lead by himself at the 91th PGA Championship.
If this were a horse race, it might be an idea to put the binoculars down because there's never been a better front-runner.
"Kinda ominous," said Rich Beem, who watched Woods shoot an impressive five-under 67 at Hazeltine National.
"He's got a pretty good track record from the front."
Only once when Woods has started a major this well — at the British Open 11 years ago, when he was only 22 and still figuring out the vagaries of links golf — has he not gone on to lift the trophy.
In 2000, at both the U.S. Open and PGA, he began with six-under 66s and went on to win, while at the 2000 and '06 British Opens, he fired 67s and won those, too.
Woods isn't just in the driver's seat to have his name etched onto the Wanamaker Trophy for the record-tying fifth time, joining Jack Nicklaus and Walter Hagen. A win this week would reaffirm that he is back and at least as good as ever.
It wasn't just his score that separated Woods from the madding crowd Thursday.
This was a performance missing the smoke and mirrors of some of his low rounds this year.
It was a continuation of his last seven rounds — at the Buick Open and Bridgestone Invitational — where the ball striking has been steadily improving and the putting deadly.
"Just how efficient he played today," said Beem, who pipped Woods to the post here seven years ago. "It wasn't anything crazy. No big tee shots way right or way left or anything like that. It was easy."
Indeed, it was a round which could have been much lower had some putts not burned the edge of the cup.
"I played really well today," said Woods, "I hit just a bunch of good shots.
"And this round could have been really low. I missed a bunch of putts out there, so it was just a very positive start."
If there was something noticeably different about Woods Thursday it was his demeanor.
Whereas at the Masters he was perpetually grumpy and at the U.S. and British Opens his disposition was very serious, on this day he was relaxed and comfortable. Perhaps it was the company — he and Padraig Harrington talked and joked throughout the entire round — or perhaps the course which, frankly, is more like a typical Tour setup. It's probably easier than Firestone, where he won last week.
"The fairways are plenty wide here, plenty of room out there," he said.
Neither were the greens treacherous, probably because of all the rain this area's had this summer.
The wind did throw a wrench in things from time to time but Woods was only really bothered on the first hole — the tenth of his round — where he missed a long iron to the right, got a good break after his ball hit a tree, then proceeded to make a difficult up-and-down seem routine.
"I felt pretty comfortable," Woods said.
Not that he was awarding himself the tournament, but Woods' answer when he was asked if he's ever played as well as he could and still lost a major was revealing.
"There are times I've put it together and I've had some pretty good margins of victory," he said. "I just feel that overall my game over the years, it's gotten better and become more consistent."
"When I'm playing well, I usually don't make that many mistakes."
He said he couldn't afford to relax but instead needed to "just keep plodding along."
"The whole idea is not to make that many mistakes. All the majors that I've won, I've made very few mistakes for the week."
The only danger he found in this round was when the Spanish bomber Alvaro Quiros reached the massive par 5 11th in two while Woods was putting out.
Quiros later apologized to Woods.
"Nothing to apologize for," Woods joked. "I mean, that's just stupid long, isn't it? To hit it that far into the wind is phenomenal."
Woods joked that he once "used to be able to move the ball, not anymore."
"I just plod my way around, shoot 67," he said.
If there is a hope for an alternate ending to this championship, it's that Harrington, who is one shot behind Woods, looks like he's in the mood to continue their battle from the Bridgestone last Sunday.
Aside from the defending champion, it's hard to see any of the other names on the leaderboard having either the game or the chutzpah to deny Woods a 15th win at his 50th major.
But Harrington's got game and, without question, he's got the pugnaciousness of a boxer.
"The great thing is if you're playing with Tiger Woods, you're doing well," said the Irishman. "If you're playing with him at the end of the week, you're always going to be in contention. If you don't want to be in that spot, you shouldn't be playing golf.
"It's an opportunity. And I definitely would look forward to being paired up with him ... it's where you want to be."
Monday, August 3, 2009
Tiger Wins Again
You will never get enough of Tiger Woods. After missing the cut at the Turnberry last month, Tiger is back again at the top of his game, this time winning the Buick Open, his career 69th title, trailing just behind Jack Nicklaus-73 and Sam Snead-82. Tiger is set to compete in two consecutive tournaments going into a major, the last this year, for the virgin time in his career. Well, even though Tiger shot a poor 71 in the first round for one under par and trailing by 8 shots, you can never write him off! One round of golf doesnt decide the champion. Great job Tiger! Messi The Legend salutes you and will continue to watch you from afar.
"He shot a 71 in the first round and said it was probably the worst putting performance of his career, leading to him skipping his post-round practice session because he was so mad."
----------------
Tiger out-grinds the rest of the Buick field
GRAND BLANC, Mich. - Michael Letzig, for a brief moment Sunday, allowed himself to dream of upsetting Tiger Woods in the fnal pairing and win the 52nd and final Buick Open at Warwick Hills.
The old swing demons were back as Woods was spraying his tee shots to the right and, for good measure, missing his irons to the right, too.
Letzig last played with Woods in the final round at the Memorial, where the world No. 1 was at his stratospheric best en route to a tournament-winning 65. This, however, wasn't the same player. Letzig thought he smelled vulnerability.
"I thought, 'Maybe,'" said the 29-year-old from Kansas City. "You could tell he wasn't on his game early and I kinda thought if I could get it going he would be beatable."
Yet after eight holes, Woods with smoke, mirrors and guts was 2 under par for the day while Letzig, who drove it beautifully only to miss birdie putt after birdie putt, made just one mistake — albeit a costly one, a double bogey — and found himself at 2 over par for the day. Far from being in a position to win, he was five shots adrift of Woods' lead.
"He just doesn't make mistakes," said Letzig, "When he does make mistakes he recovers and then makes the birdies on the easy holes that you're supposed to."
"He's just laughing at all of us. He's so good."
Of all his attributes, the one which really separates Tiger Woods from the madding crowd of touring professionals isn't necessarily the ability to launch stupendous shots or make dramatic putts.
It's that he's the ultimate grinder.
No one can make lemonade out of lemons like him. He won for the 69th time on the PGA Tour despite having to yell "Fore right!" for the final 27 holes.
"You see guys turn 65s into 69s but you hardly ever see someone turn a 69 into a 65," Woods' caddie, Steve Williams, told me before the round about his man's third round. It was that third round which gave Woods the lead going into Sunday; that and a silly bogey by Letzig on the last hole Saturday afternoon.
And has anyone ever been more money with the third-round lead?
The only time he failed to convert one was in his rookie year, 1996, at the Quad City Classic. Since then, Woods is a perfect 36-0 in holding the trophy aloft after stepping on the first tee Sunday afternoon with the lead.
Even Letzig knew the score.
"I wasn't really here to win the tournament today," he said, "It was just kind of a battle with myself out there. You try and match him, it ain't gonna happen."
For all the chattering about Woods not being the player he was, consider that he now has four victories in a season — for the 11th time in 14 professional seasons, he's won at least four times — where no other player has more than two. And he's now won 21 of his last 39 starts dating back to the 2006 British Open.
And while some of those triumphs were sown by celestial shot-making and putting, be sure that most of them were won by the grinder within Woods.
And don't think he doesn't know it.
"If you look at most events you play, you don't ever hit the ball great for four straight days," he said after Sunday's victory, "You're always going to have one off day, and even some of my best (tournaments) that I've gone 25 under par I had one off day."
"But off day score-wise can still be a pretty good score. You still kind of don't feel quite right about your game, and you ask, 'How am I going to make the score?' and I did that (Saturday). I wasn't hitting the ball very good on my back nine but somehow I made a score. And today, as I say, I hit some bad shots and somehow made a score, and that's what you have to do."
The other ingredient to the Woods Grind is, as he says, to "miss the ball in correct spots and give yourself the best angles."
"I really understand that," he said.
The only time he diverted from the blueprint was on the par-5 13th, where he tried to slice a 5-wood around a tree on the right of the fairway despite a left-to-right wind and water on the right of the green. His squirter of a shot landed in the middle of the lake, prompting Woods to put his hat over his face and have a few stern words with himself, in private.
"I was a little angry," he said.
But another of his attributes is the ability to turn his emotions off. He composed himself, took a drop, then hit a delicious pitch from 60 yards to inside 3 feet and saved par.
He was never really threatened and strolled home to win by three strokes.
But the greater question now becomes whether Woods will be able to carry this victory forward. It came, after all, on the easiest course on Tour and against one of the weaker fields. Woods and Jim Furyk were the only players in the top 25 of the world rankings here to mark the last time Michigan is likely to see professional golf for some time.
Woods flies home to Florida for a couple of days before going to Ohio's Firestone — a course on which he's won six times in nine starts — and then on to Minnesota and the PGA for one last shot at a major.
"I'm starting to feel better than I did the last time I played," Woods said in comparing this week with his missed cut at Turnberry.
"I can use this as maybe a little bit of momentum going into the next two weeks."
In many ways, two weeks which will define his comeback year.
Source: http://msn.foxsports.com/golf/story/9884896/Tiger-out-grinds-the-rest-of-the-Buick-field#tb
"He shot a 71 in the first round and said it was probably the worst putting performance of his career, leading to him skipping his post-round practice session because he was so mad."
----------------
Tiger out-grinds the rest of the Buick field
GRAND BLANC, Mich. - Michael Letzig, for a brief moment Sunday, allowed himself to dream of upsetting Tiger Woods in the fnal pairing and win the 52nd and final Buick Open at Warwick Hills.
The old swing demons were back as Woods was spraying his tee shots to the right and, for good measure, missing his irons to the right, too.
Letzig last played with Woods in the final round at the Memorial, where the world No. 1 was at his stratospheric best en route to a tournament-winning 65. This, however, wasn't the same player. Letzig thought he smelled vulnerability.
"I thought, 'Maybe,'" said the 29-year-old from Kansas City. "You could tell he wasn't on his game early and I kinda thought if I could get it going he would be beatable."
Yet after eight holes, Woods with smoke, mirrors and guts was 2 under par for the day while Letzig, who drove it beautifully only to miss birdie putt after birdie putt, made just one mistake — albeit a costly one, a double bogey — and found himself at 2 over par for the day. Far from being in a position to win, he was five shots adrift of Woods' lead.
"He just doesn't make mistakes," said Letzig, "When he does make mistakes he recovers and then makes the birdies on the easy holes that you're supposed to."
"He's just laughing at all of us. He's so good."
Of all his attributes, the one which really separates Tiger Woods from the madding crowd of touring professionals isn't necessarily the ability to launch stupendous shots or make dramatic putts.
It's that he's the ultimate grinder.
No one can make lemonade out of lemons like him. He won for the 69th time on the PGA Tour despite having to yell "Fore right!" for the final 27 holes.
"You see guys turn 65s into 69s but you hardly ever see someone turn a 69 into a 65," Woods' caddie, Steve Williams, told me before the round about his man's third round. It was that third round which gave Woods the lead going into Sunday; that and a silly bogey by Letzig on the last hole Saturday afternoon.
And has anyone ever been more money with the third-round lead?
The only time he failed to convert one was in his rookie year, 1996, at the Quad City Classic. Since then, Woods is a perfect 36-0 in holding the trophy aloft after stepping on the first tee Sunday afternoon with the lead.
Even Letzig knew the score.
"I wasn't really here to win the tournament today," he said, "It was just kind of a battle with myself out there. You try and match him, it ain't gonna happen."
For all the chattering about Woods not being the player he was, consider that he now has four victories in a season — for the 11th time in 14 professional seasons, he's won at least four times — where no other player has more than two. And he's now won 21 of his last 39 starts dating back to the 2006 British Open.
And while some of those triumphs were sown by celestial shot-making and putting, be sure that most of them were won by the grinder within Woods.
And don't think he doesn't know it.
"If you look at most events you play, you don't ever hit the ball great for four straight days," he said after Sunday's victory, "You're always going to have one off day, and even some of my best (tournaments) that I've gone 25 under par I had one off day."
"But off day score-wise can still be a pretty good score. You still kind of don't feel quite right about your game, and you ask, 'How am I going to make the score?' and I did that (Saturday). I wasn't hitting the ball very good on my back nine but somehow I made a score. And today, as I say, I hit some bad shots and somehow made a score, and that's what you have to do."
The other ingredient to the Woods Grind is, as he says, to "miss the ball in correct spots and give yourself the best angles."
"I really understand that," he said.
The only time he diverted from the blueprint was on the par-5 13th, where he tried to slice a 5-wood around a tree on the right of the fairway despite a left-to-right wind and water on the right of the green. His squirter of a shot landed in the middle of the lake, prompting Woods to put his hat over his face and have a few stern words with himself, in private.
"I was a little angry," he said.
But another of his attributes is the ability to turn his emotions off. He composed himself, took a drop, then hit a delicious pitch from 60 yards to inside 3 feet and saved par.
He was never really threatened and strolled home to win by three strokes.
But the greater question now becomes whether Woods will be able to carry this victory forward. It came, after all, on the easiest course on Tour and against one of the weaker fields. Woods and Jim Furyk were the only players in the top 25 of the world rankings here to mark the last time Michigan is likely to see professional golf for some time.
Woods flies home to Florida for a couple of days before going to Ohio's Firestone — a course on which he's won six times in nine starts — and then on to Minnesota and the PGA for one last shot at a major.
"I'm starting to feel better than I did the last time I played," Woods said in comparing this week with his missed cut at Turnberry.
"I can use this as maybe a little bit of momentum going into the next two weeks."
In many ways, two weeks which will define his comeback year.
Source: http://msn.foxsports.com/golf/story/9884896/Tiger-out-grinds-the-rest-of-the-Buick-field#tb
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
VICTORY for Tiger and Federer, Again
Woods wins his tournament with a late birdie
BETHESDA, Md. (AP) - Tiger Woods made it a hat trick of victories in tournaments hosted by PGA Tour stars, this one the most meaningful of all because it was his own.
Woods lived up to his hopes of being a "greedy host" Sunday, leaving Anthony Kim in his wake and then making a 20-foot birdie putt on the 16th hole to overtake hard-charging Hunter Mahan for a one-shot victory in his AT&T National.
Woods closed with a 3-under 67 at Congressional for his third victory of the year, the others coming at the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill and Jack Nicklaus' Memorial Tournament.
Inside the ropes, they all felt the same.
"Whether it's my tournament, Jack's, Arnold's ... it really doesn't matter. You go out there with the same intensity to win," Woods said.
The challenge came from a rising star, just not the Californian anyone expected.
Mahan made six birdies on the back nine for a 62, tying the course record that Kim set Thursday. The final birdie on the 18th gave Mahan a share of the lead, and he had to wait more than an hour to see if Woods could top him.
Woods twice scrambled for par to stay tied for the lead, then looked as though he squandered a good birdie chance on the par-5 16th when his chip from the rough came out heavy and stopped 20 feet from the hole. Backing off once, he rolled in it, then walked stoically to the hole, nodding his head.
He closed with routine pars to finish at 13-under 267. The 68th victory of his PGA Tour career moved him to the top of the money list and the FedEx Cup standings for the first time this year.
Whether it gives him any momentum will be determined in two weeks at Turnberry.
All three of Woods' victories this year have come in his final start before a major, and he finished four shots behind in both the Masters and the U.S. Open at Bethpage Black two weeks ago.
The next stop is the British Open on a links course Woods has never seen.
As for the golf he played Sunday - that was nothing new.
Woods kept mistakes to a minimum - he failed to make par on the 11th hole for the fourth straight round - and took advantage of his birdie chances when he had them.
"Six holes to go, and at the time I was tied for the lead," Woods said, referring to when Mahan finished his round. "You can win the tournament or you can lose the tournament from here. Just got to keep plodding along and hopefully sneak one or two birdies coming in and get the title."
Kim simply couldn't keep up.
It was the ideal final pairing at Congressional - the world's No. 1 player and tournament host tied with Kim, a confident 24-year-old who was the defending champion. Kim lost four shots in four holes on the front nine, and didn't make a birdie on the back nine.
He shot a 71 to finish alone in third, four shots behind.
"I had a lot of fun," Kim said. "I know I'll be knocking on the door again. It's only a matter of time. I learned if you have a birdie putt, you better make it."
Bryce Molder closed with a 68 to finish alone in fourth, which came with a $288,000 check that was worth more than money alone. It put him atop a special money list that ended Sunday, earning a trip to the British Open. The other spot from the money list went to Paul Goydos.
Brandt Snedeker, finally healthy after a rib injury, had a 68-67 weekend and tied for fifth with U.S. Open champion Lucas Glover. Snedeker also earned a spot at Turnberry as the leading player among the top five not already eligible for the British Open.
Mahan had to settle for his third straight top 10, although he put on quite a show, even if hardly anyone noticed.
Most of the 40,000 fans at Congressional scrambled for a sight of the present and the future - Woods and Kim - until Mahan started dropping in putts from everyone on the back nine.
"I think everybody was watching AK and Tiger and expecting kind of a battle there, and I knew I just had to go low today," Mahan said. "I figured great players up on the leaderboard like that, I figured they'd make it to at least 13 or 14 under."
He was in the family dining area when he finished, watching with Woods' wife, Elin, and their 2-year-old daughter, Sam. Woods missed a 10-foot putt on the 14th and Mahan said he jokingly cheered in a light moment.
But he knew better.
"I mean, he's pretty good," Mahan said. "He knows what he's doing. He knows how to play this game better than anybody."
Kim found that out quickly.
Playing with Woods for the first time - in the final pairing at Woods' own tournament, no less - Kim walked with a swagger and a smile to the first tee, dressed in white pants and a royal blue shirt. He then smoked his driver some 25 yards past Woods, nearly holed out his wedge and tapped in for birdie for a quick advantage.
A four-hole stretch changed everything.
Despite a wild hook into the gallery, Kim managed to reach the green 60 feet away and lagged to 5 feet. He missed the par putt, though, and Woods pulled away on the sixth with a big tee shot and an approach that barely cleared the water, leaving him 15 feet for birdie.
Their day was summed up at the par-3 seventh, when both hit tee shots 6 feet away.
Kim missed, Woods made.
Kim then three-putted from 20 feet on the eighth, missing a 3-foot par putt.
The threat came from Mahan, an explosive player like Kim, minus the hip-hop.
He teed off more than an hour before Woods, then poured it on along the back nine with six birdies, including a 15-foot putt on the final hole to tie the course record.
Mahan was on his way to the range when they heard a roar a half-mile away and his caddie checked his phone to see that Woods had made birdie. Mahan finished hitting balls and was headed to the putting green when a young girl approached him for an autograph.
He might not have noticed what was written on the back of her T-shirt: "Tiger's Back."
http://msn.foxsports.com/golf/story/9768766/Woods-wins-his-tournament-with-a-late-birdie
Woods lived up to his hopes of being a "greedy host" Sunday, leaving Anthony Kim in his wake and then making a 20-foot birdie putt on the 16th hole to overtake hard-charging Hunter Mahan for a one-shot victory in his AT&T National.
Woods closed with a 3-under 67 at Congressional for his third victory of the year, the others coming at the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill and Jack Nicklaus' Memorial Tournament.
Inside the ropes, they all felt the same.
"Whether it's my tournament, Jack's, Arnold's ... it really doesn't matter. You go out there with the same intensity to win," Woods said.
The challenge came from a rising star, just not the Californian anyone expected.
Mahan made six birdies on the back nine for a 62, tying the course record that Kim set Thursday. The final birdie on the 18th gave Mahan a share of the lead, and he had to wait more than an hour to see if Woods could top him.
Woods twice scrambled for par to stay tied for the lead, then looked as though he squandered a good birdie chance on the par-5 16th when his chip from the rough came out heavy and stopped 20 feet from the hole. Backing off once, he rolled in it, then walked stoically to the hole, nodding his head.
He closed with routine pars to finish at 13-under 267. The 68th victory of his PGA Tour career moved him to the top of the money list and the FedEx Cup standings for the first time this year.
Whether it gives him any momentum will be determined in two weeks at Turnberry.
All three of Woods' victories this year have come in his final start before a major, and he finished four shots behind in both the Masters and the U.S. Open at Bethpage Black two weeks ago.
The next stop is the British Open on a links course Woods has never seen.
As for the golf he played Sunday - that was nothing new.
Woods kept mistakes to a minimum - he failed to make par on the 11th hole for the fourth straight round - and took advantage of his birdie chances when he had them.
"Six holes to go, and at the time I was tied for the lead," Woods said, referring to when Mahan finished his round. "You can win the tournament or you can lose the tournament from here. Just got to keep plodding along and hopefully sneak one or two birdies coming in and get the title."
Kim simply couldn't keep up.
It was the ideal final pairing at Congressional - the world's No. 1 player and tournament host tied with Kim, a confident 24-year-old who was the defending champion. Kim lost four shots in four holes on the front nine, and didn't make a birdie on the back nine.
He shot a 71 to finish alone in third, four shots behind.
"I had a lot of fun," Kim said. "I know I'll be knocking on the door again. It's only a matter of time. I learned if you have a birdie putt, you better make it."
Bryce Molder closed with a 68 to finish alone in fourth, which came with a $288,000 check that was worth more than money alone. It put him atop a special money list that ended Sunday, earning a trip to the British Open. The other spot from the money list went to Paul Goydos.
Brandt Snedeker, finally healthy after a rib injury, had a 68-67 weekend and tied for fifth with U.S. Open champion Lucas Glover. Snedeker also earned a spot at Turnberry as the leading player among the top five not already eligible for the British Open.
Mahan had to settle for his third straight top 10, although he put on quite a show, even if hardly anyone noticed.
Most of the 40,000 fans at Congressional scrambled for a sight of the present and the future - Woods and Kim - until Mahan started dropping in putts from everyone on the back nine.
"I think everybody was watching AK and Tiger and expecting kind of a battle there, and I knew I just had to go low today," Mahan said. "I figured great players up on the leaderboard like that, I figured they'd make it to at least 13 or 14 under."
He was in the family dining area when he finished, watching with Woods' wife, Elin, and their 2-year-old daughter, Sam. Woods missed a 10-foot putt on the 14th and Mahan said he jokingly cheered in a light moment.
But he knew better.
"I mean, he's pretty good," Mahan said. "He knows what he's doing. He knows how to play this game better than anybody."
Kim found that out quickly.
Playing with Woods for the first time - in the final pairing at Woods' own tournament, no less - Kim walked with a swagger and a smile to the first tee, dressed in white pants and a royal blue shirt. He then smoked his driver some 25 yards past Woods, nearly holed out his wedge and tapped in for birdie for a quick advantage.
A four-hole stretch changed everything.
Despite a wild hook into the gallery, Kim managed to reach the green 60 feet away and lagged to 5 feet. He missed the par putt, though, and Woods pulled away on the sixth with a big tee shot and an approach that barely cleared the water, leaving him 15 feet for birdie.
Their day was summed up at the par-3 seventh, when both hit tee shots 6 feet away.
Kim missed, Woods made.
Kim then three-putted from 20 feet on the eighth, missing a 3-foot par putt.
The threat came from Mahan, an explosive player like Kim, minus the hip-hop.
He teed off more than an hour before Woods, then poured it on along the back nine with six birdies, including a 15-foot putt on the final hole to tie the course record.
Mahan was on his way to the range when they heard a roar a half-mile away and his caddie checked his phone to see that Woods had made birdie. Mahan finished hitting balls and was headed to the putting green when a young girl approached him for an autograph.
He might not have noticed what was written on the back of her T-shirt: "Tiger's Back."
http://msn.foxsports.com/golf/story/9768766/Woods-wins-his-tournament-with-a-late-birdie
Federer beats Roddick for record 15th Grand Slam (minus the absence of Nadal *sigh*)
http://msn.foxsports.com/tennis/story/9767928/Federer-beats-Roddick-for-record-15th-Grand-Slam
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
My Weekend With Tiger Woods!
Why Tiger is so special? There isnt anyone like him, period. This weekend I hope I can watch Tiger roarsSS to his 15th major in history!
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So long and so ominous, the shadow he casts has the potential to stretch substantially with the upcoming U.S. Open at Bethpage Black.
Then again, hasn't that been the enduring storyline throughout Tiger Woods' career?
Having already authored a series of golf's greatest accomplishments, Woods can take ownership of more history with another major triumph. Not only would he become just the seventh player to successfully defend the U.S. Open — and the first since Curtis Strange 20 years ago — but if he were to prevail at Bethpage, Woods would lay claim to something that no other golfer has done.
He would have back-to-back victories in each of the four majors.
Of course, he's the only one to successfully defend three (Walter Hagen and Bobby Jones did so in two), so in one respect, Woods' only competition inside the record books is himself.
That is the landscape he has shaped, and though it has provided a legacy with great depth — plus a fortune for six lifetimes — what fuels his mission are challenges. Winning the career Grand Slam? Check. Four consecutive majors? Check. Largest winning margins in the U.S. Open and Masters? Check and check. More majors than anyone not named Jack Nicklaus? Check.
Now, throw into that mix his bid to win a second consecutive U.S. Open, arguably the largest hurdle he has faced.
"The reason I'd say it is," Strange said, "is the golf course you have for a U.S. Open. It's just very difficult. You tend not to know it that well, and any weakness in your game is magnified at the U.S. Open. Forget it if you're not firing on all cylinders."
But against all those odds, Strange pauses and suggests, "there's a distinct possibility he could do it this year."
Because it's Bethpage, where Woods won in 2002? That's one part of the equation. "It's a long, hard, big golf course, and it eliminates a lot of people on the first tee," Strange said.
But beyond that, Strange points to the Woods aura, which thrives, even with roller-coaster rides this year at the Masters, Quail Hollow and Players Championship.
"Lee Trevino said God didn't give every golfer everything," Strange said. "But it certainly looks like he did with Tiger."
When he backed up his U.S. Open triumph at The Country Club in 1988 with a victory the next summer at Oak Hill, Strange told reporters, "Move over, Ben."
He was referring to the incomparable Ben Hogan, who had been the last man to successfully defend a U.S. Open title, in 1951.
Twenty years have passed and though the pride hasn't diminished one bit, Strange offers perspective.
"That's the only time you'll ever hear my name and Hogan's name in the same sentence," he said. "I mean, I was in the right place at the right time."
Maybe, but the reality is, Strange did something that only Hogan, Jones, Willie Anderson, John McDermott and Ralph Guldahl had done, and no one has done since.
"It's not so much what I did," Strange said, "and I truly believe this, but it's more that I did something that Nicklaus didn't do. Palmer didn't do it. Watson didn't do it. Trevino didn't do it. I guess I was luckier than them."
Certainly, Nicklaus never fared exceedingly well as a U.S. Open defender. The only cut he missed in his first 23 tries as a pro came in 1963 (at The Country Club) — as defending champ. In three subsequent chances to defend the title, Nicklaus finished second, four behind Trevino in 1968; tied for fourth in 1973; and joint sixth in 1981.
Woods twice has failed to successfully defend his U.S. Open title, but that can be rationalized thusly: Southern Hills in 2001 and Olympia Fields in 2003 both brought a lot of players into the mix.
No such worries at Bethpage, which comes at you with enormous real estate (7,445 yards) and provides great vibes for Woods, given his three-stroke triumph over Phil Mickelson seven summers ago.
Advantage, Woods? He says no.
"I don't know how much (the course) has changed," Woods said. "I don't know how much they have lengthened it, whether they have done anything to the greens or if my (yardage) book from 2002 is even good."
Though he considers the world's No. 1 player the favorite, Strange concedes "even Tiger Woods has to be sharp" if he hopes to defend and, just as important, "he'll need good fortune."
Strange said it was on his side in 1989, most notably in the second round at Oak Hill when he holed a 115-yard wedge for an eagle-3 at the fourth. It helped soften the pain of a first-round 71 that had left him tied for 35th; instead, Strange assumed the lead with his second-round 64.
There hadn't been an awful lot of media hype about going back-to-back, but it picked up when Strange went in front of Tom Kite by one. Strange then went without a birdie in a third-round 73 and fell three behind Kite, who shot 69.
If the hype died, the pressure didn't, and Strange arrived Sunday in a better frame of mind. He ran off par after par and watched things unfold favorably. Kite drove it into the water at the short fifth, then three-putted from 10 feet for a triple-bogey 7. Scott Simpson, paired with Kite, stumbled, too, so when Strange made par at the 10th, he was back in the lead.
When at the par-4 16th Strange halted a stretch of 35 holes without a birdie, he was leading by two. A short time later, he was telling reporters, "Look out, Willie Anderson."
It was in reference to the only man to post three consecutive victories in the U.S. Open. Though Strange concedes "I learned more about Willie Anderson than I ever dreamed of," he brushes off a suggestion that he nearly matched it.
OK, so he was only two back through 54 holes at Medinah in 1990. You know that saying about "horseshoes and hand grenades," Strange said. In other words, close three-quarters through means nothing; he closed with 75 and faded to T-21.
He failed to match Anderson's effort, but Strange will always have his back-to-back, and no one knows more than he how much effort that took. He never won on Tour again after Oak Hill.
He was 34 when he won at Oak Hill, but Strange doesn't see any sort of similar fate for Woods, 33. Nor is there a concern that Woods will pull a repeat of Guldahl, who soon after winning his second consecutive U.S. Open, in 1938, disappeared from competition and said: "I never did have a tremendous desire to win."
Consider Woods the polar opposite.
"He's a unique individual, much less a golfer," Strange said. "He's very intelligent, very aware, has great athleticism, confidence — all of the above. He knows so much better than everyone else, and he knows he should win."
But will he?
History is working against Woods. Then again, it was working against Strange, too.
Source: http://msn.foxsports.com/golf/story/9682652/Can-Tiger-win-back-to-back-U.S.-Opens?
more news:
http://msn.foxsports.com/golf/story/9670112/Tiger-to-begin-U.S.-Open-with-Cabrera,-Harrington
Monday, June 8, 2009
Tiger and Fedex Finally Heals Their Wounds!
Football seasons are over. Fedex tied Sampras record with the most major singles titles after winning the French Open for the first time in history, his 14th major title! And Tiger Woods wins Memorial with a 7-under 65 and a one-shot victory without missing a fairway in the final round. What a perfect day for Federer and Tiger, two good buddies. Bravo!!!----------
Tiger wins Memorial with late charge
DUBLIN, Ohio (AP) - No need to worry about Tiger Woods heading into the U.S. Open.
Woods broke away from a four-way tie for the lead Sunday at the Memorial with birdies on his final two holes, the last one a 7-iron that stopped a foot away from the cup for a 7-under 65 and a one-shot victory over Jim Furyk.
With a high-charged rally from a four-shot deficit, Woods revved up the crowd and silenced those who questioned his game heading into his title defense at Bethpage Black in two weeks.
He didn't miss a fairway in the final round, the first time he has done that in more than five years. He missed only five fairways all week, his most accurate tournament off the tee since the 1998 Masters.
Woods won the Memorial for a record fourth time, and tournament host Jack Nicklaus was there to greet him behind the 18th green. It was his second victory this year after missing eight months from knee surgery, and Woods figured he will only get better.
"I knew it was coming around," Woods said. "I just wasn't as consistent as I needed to be."
Furyk made a 20-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole for a 69 to finish alone in second.
"I just didn't beat one guy," Furyk said. "It (stinks) finishing second. But he played better. A 7 under on those greens and with the conditions we dealt with, that's pretty spectacular. I just wish you all would just quit (ticking) him off ... so he has to come back and keep proving stuff. I think he answered a lot of questions today."
Woods finished at 12-under 276 and won for the 67th time in his career. The timing could not have been better. He was within one shot of the lead going in to the back nine at Quail Hollow and made nothing better than par for a 72. He played in the final group at The Players Championship, couldn't find a fairway and closed with a 73.
On a firm, fast course under steamy sunshine at Muirfield Village, he was close to perfect.
Woods surged into contention with a chip-in for eagle out of gnarly rough behind the 11th green, following through with one hand and eventually using the other to pump his fist. He took his first lead with a two-putt birdie on the par-5 15th.
After a bogey from the bunker on the 16th, Woods was tied with Furyk, Jonathan Byrd and Davis Love III.
But not for long.
Woods hit his approach to 9 feet behind the hole on the 17th, and rolled it in for a birdie and the lead. After hitting the fairway with a 3-iron on the 18th, he hit 7-iron from 183 yards and let another raucous cheer indicate the outcome. Woods slapped hands with caddie Steve Williams and tapped in for his best closing round to win since the Dubai Desert Classic last year.
Byrd holed out from 82 yards for eagle at No. 7 to take control of the tournament, only to give it away with a double bogey from the rough and bunker on the 14th. Still, he had the best chance to catch Woods. Two shots behind, he hit his approach to 4 feet on the 17th, but missed the putt. Byrd finished with a meaningless double bogey for a 72 and tied for third with Mark Wilson (73).
Love, who could have avoided 36-hole U.S. Open qualifying Monday with a victory, got into contention with consecutive birdie putts of about 50 feet, only to miss an 8-foot birdie on the 15th.
He fell out of the hunt with a bogey from the fairway bunker on the 17th, then hitting his tee shot into the water on the 18th and closing with a triple bogey.
Matt Bettencourt, the PGA Tour rookie who started the final round tied with Wilson, held his own for seven holes until a three-putt bogey, followed by a chunked wedge into the water for a double bogey. He closed with a 75 and tied for fifth.
Woods played with Michael Letzig, who shot 75 but was treated to quite a show.
"I've never seen anyone hit irons like that," Letzig said. "I tried not to watch him, but some of those shots were unreal."
Woods' driving set up those iron shots. The fairways at Muirfield Village are among the most generous, but he wasn't close to missing them and often set himself up on the right side to attack the pins.
"I don't know why everyone talks about how bad he drives it," Letzig said. "Every drive I saw was perfect."
http://msn.foxsports.com/golf/story/9654120/Tiger-wins-Memorial-with-late-charge
Friday, April 10, 2009
Will History Repeats Itself for Tiger Woods?
But one round doesn't make a Masters champion.
"No one's won anything yet," said Adam Scott, who shot a 71. "We could be here on Sunday and see the same scores at the top of the leader board depending on the weather and how they set up the course."
Woods didn't disagree.
"It's a long week," he said.
"Weather's going to start changing a little bit here. You've got to just keep patient. Stay with it.
"It's not like I haven't been in this position before."
Funny he should say that. He's shot 70 in the first round here three previous times — 1997, 2001 and 2002.
He won each time.
------
Tiger's 70 included missed opportunities
by Robert Lusetich
AUGUSTA, Ga. - The cacophonous roars returned to Augusta National — indeed, the patrons were hoarse by day's end, such was the birdie-fest they'd cheered — but for Tiger Woods there were mostly groans and sighs after he missed the chance to post his best-ever first round at a Masters.
After blocking a 6-footer for birdie on 17, then taking bogey upon sailing the green on the last, Woods finished at two under, his 70 good enough for a tie for 20th but five shots adrift of first-round leader Chad Campbell.
"Overall, I'm pleased with the way I hit the golf ball, I just didn't make many putts," said Woods, who tied his previous best first-round score here. "And I let a couple of shots slip away at the end there."
The greencoats who guard the integrity of the National clearly listened to the chorus of complaints from fans and players — led by Woods — alike that the Masters had lost its mojo.
They set up the course so it would rain birdies and — helped by a perfect, windless sunny day — the field responded by setting a Masters record for most rounds in the 60s (19) on an opening day.
More records could've fallen. Campbell, a flat-swinging Texan who's not afraid to go low, had it to nine under par through 16 holes before stumbling with two bogeys.
The tournament record is 63, held by Nick Price and Greg Norman, and with soft, receptive greens, generous pin positions and the field playing what amounted to the forward tees, even the 54-year-old Shark felt he'd left shots out there when he came in with a 70.
"I had a lot of opportunities, really could have shot a nice, mid-60s score today," Norman said.
This was such a change from the dour grinding of the past two Masters that even 50-year-old Larry Mize got in on the act, shooting a five-under-par 67. And this from a guy who's managed just one top-10 finish on the old-timers' circuit this season.
"I guess it turned the clock back a little bit," said the 1987 champion.
"(But) there were definitely some more chances for birdies than there have been in the recent years. And I think that's a good thing and I think they (the tournament committee) do, too, and that's why they did it."
Irishman Padraig Harrington, who's in search of his third major in a row, said the course was so hospitable that he felt anxious that he wasn't keeping up with the Campbells and the Jim Furyks and Hunter Mahans, who both shot 66.
"It was a day for scoring," said Harrington, "Definitely one of the more generous days ever around Augusta."
"There was a little bit of urgency out there when I was level par, one under par."
If he felt a sense of urgency at one under par, after eight holes, Woods must have felt like he was pedaling up a hill while everyone else was speeding past in Lamborghinis. With the leader board awash in red, he had all pars and a bogey on the par-3 sixth. Unlike his modus operandi at Bay Hill, where he was indifferent off the tee but found a way to score, he was hitting it well enough — he finished with 14 greens and 10 fairways — but the putter wasn't his friend.
After mis-reading a birdie chance on the par-5 eighth, Woods clearly decided that if the putts wouldn't fall, he'd just have to hit it closer, which he did on the ninth, setting up a 3-footer for birdie.
"I didn't make any birdies till 9, so it was nice to turn with some kind of momentum going into the back nine," he said.
He threatened the leader board after three straight birdies beginning on the par-5 13th. "After seeing the scoreboard, I knew everyone was making birdies everywhere on that back nine, so I knew it could be had with good shots," he said.
"Basically, I was in position to shoot four under par, and I just didn't get it done."
Another who didn't get it done was Phil Mickelson. The two-time Masters champion wasted a perfect opportunity to challenge Woods for the world No. 1 ranking on what he admitted was a course playing "as easy as I've seen."
"I drove it terrible. I played terrible. Putted terrible," said Mickelson, who shot a 73.
But one round doesn't make a Masters champion.
"No one's won anything yet," said Adam Scott, who shot a 71. "We could be here on Sunday and see the same scores at the top of the leader board depending on the weather and how they set up the course."
Woods didn't disagree.
"It's a long week," he said.
"Weather's going to start changing a little bit here. You've got to just keep patient. Stay with it.
"It's not like I haven't been in this position before."
Funny he should say that. He's shot 70 in the first round here three previous times — 1997, 2001 and 2002.
He won each time.
Source: http://msn.foxsports.com/golf/story/9437716/Tiger's-70-included-missed-opportunities?MSNHPHMA
"No one's won anything yet," said Adam Scott, who shot a 71. "We could be here on Sunday and see the same scores at the top of the leader board depending on the weather and how they set up the course."
Woods didn't disagree.
"It's a long week," he said.
"Weather's going to start changing a little bit here. You've got to just keep patient. Stay with it.
"It's not like I haven't been in this position before."
Funny he should say that. He's shot 70 in the first round here three previous times — 1997, 2001 and 2002.
He won each time.
------
Tiger's 70 included missed opportunities
by Robert Lusetich
AUGUSTA, Ga. - The cacophonous roars returned to Augusta National — indeed, the patrons were hoarse by day's end, such was the birdie-fest they'd cheered — but for Tiger Woods there were mostly groans and sighs after he missed the chance to post his best-ever first round at a Masters.
After blocking a 6-footer for birdie on 17, then taking bogey upon sailing the green on the last, Woods finished at two under, his 70 good enough for a tie for 20th but five shots adrift of first-round leader Chad Campbell.
"Overall, I'm pleased with the way I hit the golf ball, I just didn't make many putts," said Woods, who tied his previous best first-round score here. "And I let a couple of shots slip away at the end there."
The greencoats who guard the integrity of the National clearly listened to the chorus of complaints from fans and players — led by Woods — alike that the Masters had lost its mojo.
They set up the course so it would rain birdies and — helped by a perfect, windless sunny day — the field responded by setting a Masters record for most rounds in the 60s (19) on an opening day.
More records could've fallen. Campbell, a flat-swinging Texan who's not afraid to go low, had it to nine under par through 16 holes before stumbling with two bogeys.
The tournament record is 63, held by Nick Price and Greg Norman, and with soft, receptive greens, generous pin positions and the field playing what amounted to the forward tees, even the 54-year-old Shark felt he'd left shots out there when he came in with a 70.
"I had a lot of opportunities, really could have shot a nice, mid-60s score today," Norman said.
This was such a change from the dour grinding of the past two Masters that even 50-year-old Larry Mize got in on the act, shooting a five-under-par 67. And this from a guy who's managed just one top-10 finish on the old-timers' circuit this season.
"I guess it turned the clock back a little bit," said the 1987 champion.
"(But) there were definitely some more chances for birdies than there have been in the recent years. And I think that's a good thing and I think they (the tournament committee) do, too, and that's why they did it."
Irishman Padraig Harrington, who's in search of his third major in a row, said the course was so hospitable that he felt anxious that he wasn't keeping up with the Campbells and the Jim Furyks and Hunter Mahans, who both shot 66.
"It was a day for scoring," said Harrington, "Definitely one of the more generous days ever around Augusta."
"There was a little bit of urgency out there when I was level par, one under par."
If he felt a sense of urgency at one under par, after eight holes, Woods must have felt like he was pedaling up a hill while everyone else was speeding past in Lamborghinis. With the leader board awash in red, he had all pars and a bogey on the par-3 sixth. Unlike his modus operandi at Bay Hill, where he was indifferent off the tee but found a way to score, he was hitting it well enough — he finished with 14 greens and 10 fairways — but the putter wasn't his friend.
After mis-reading a birdie chance on the par-5 eighth, Woods clearly decided that if the putts wouldn't fall, he'd just have to hit it closer, which he did on the ninth, setting up a 3-footer for birdie.
"I didn't make any birdies till 9, so it was nice to turn with some kind of momentum going into the back nine," he said.
He threatened the leader board after three straight birdies beginning on the par-5 13th. "After seeing the scoreboard, I knew everyone was making birdies everywhere on that back nine, so I knew it could be had with good shots," he said.
"Basically, I was in position to shoot four under par, and I just didn't get it done."
Another who didn't get it done was Phil Mickelson. The two-time Masters champion wasted a perfect opportunity to challenge Woods for the world No. 1 ranking on what he admitted was a course playing "as easy as I've seen."
"I drove it terrible. I played terrible. Putted terrible," said Mickelson, who shot a 73.
But one round doesn't make a Masters champion.
"No one's won anything yet," said Adam Scott, who shot a 71. "We could be here on Sunday and see the same scores at the top of the leader board depending on the weather and how they set up the course."
Woods didn't disagree.
"It's a long week," he said.
"Weather's going to start changing a little bit here. You've got to just keep patient. Stay with it.
"It's not like I haven't been in this position before."
Funny he should say that. He's shot 70 in the first round here three previous times — 1997, 2001 and 2002.
He won each time.
Source: http://msn.foxsports.com/golf/story/9437716/Tiger's-70-included-missed-opportunities?MSNHPHMA
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
Tiger Oh Tiger!!
Tiger Woods' superb victory brings not just excitement and joys back to the golf tournaments but also more wealth to the broadcasters!
Tiger Woods' Comeback Victory Scores Big Ratings
By David Tanklefsky -- Broadcasting & Cable, 3/30/2009 11:26:09 AM MT
Arnold Palmer Invitational was highest rated golf tournament since last June's U.S. Open
Tiger Woods' comeback victory in the Arnold Palmer Invitational Sunday on NBC delivered the highest rating of any golf tournament since last June’s U.S. Open, according to Nielsen Media Research.
The final round earned a 4.9/10 rating, a 23% increase from last year. The rating eclipses two major tournaments last year—The British Open and PGA Championship—which Woods did not play in because of knee surgery.
Woods won the Invitational by overcoming a five-shot deficit and birdying the final hole. It was his sixth time winning the tournament.
Source: http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/190911-Tiger_Woods_Comeback_Victory_Scores_Big_Ratings.php?rssid=20065
Tiger Woods' Comeback Victory Scores Big Ratings
By David Tanklefsky -- Broadcasting & Cable, 3/30/2009 11:26:09 AM MT
Arnold Palmer Invitational was highest rated golf tournament since last June's U.S. Open
Tiger Woods' comeback victory in the Arnold Palmer Invitational Sunday on NBC delivered the highest rating of any golf tournament since last June’s U.S. Open, according to Nielsen Media Research.
The final round earned a 4.9/10 rating, a 23% increase from last year. The rating eclipses two major tournaments last year—The British Open and PGA Championship—which Woods did not play in because of knee surgery.
Woods won the Invitational by overcoming a five-shot deficit and birdying the final hole. It was his sixth time winning the tournament.
Source: http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/190911-Tiger_Woods_Comeback_Victory_Scores_Big_Ratings.php?rssid=20065
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
The Unbelievable Tiger Woods
The bigger the stage, the better Woods is
ORLANDO - Even Arnold Palmer was left in awe of what had unfolded before his eyes in the fading light at Bay Hill.
"It's happened every time," The King said, smiling and shaking his head.
Golfers aren't supposed to be superheroes following theatrically implausible storylines contrived by Hollywood script doctors — too much can go wrong in this confounded sport — but how else to explain Tiger Woods?
When does he not rise to the occasion? The grander the stage, the greater he becomes.
"I don't think I've ever seen him make a putt when he really needed it," deadpanned Zach Johnson, who finished third at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, "And that was the epitome of sarcasm."
With one perfect roll, in a scene backlit by flashing bulbs, and, as ever, with everything on the line, Woods' 16-foot birdie putt on the 72nd hole found the bottom of the cup to give him a stirring one-shot victory for his record-extending sixth title at Bay Hill.
"That putt was never missing," said caddie Steve Williams, who embraced Woods as he did last year on the same green in wild celebration.
But this victory was arguably one of greater significance given Woods spent eight months away from golf after major reconstructive knee surgery following last June's U.S. Open triumph at Torrey Pines.
It will serve both to quiet the chattering classes who questioned whether he could return to his glory and as a warning shot across the bow of the pretenders to his throne with the Masters scheduled to begin April 9. It also means that even if Phil Mickelson wins next weekend at the Shell Houston Open, he can't wrest the world No. 1 ranking away from Woods.
"I hadn't been in the mix since the U.S. Open, so it was neat to be in contention again, to feel the heat on the back nine, and then obviously the big bonus is to win a golf tournament," Woods said of his 66th win — and 19th in which he came from behind — on Tour.
"It's always nice to win a tournament pre-Augusta."
And the hotter it got with the tournament on the line, the more elevated Woods became, crafting this victory with courage and clutch par putts more than with superior ball-striking. Indeed, after hitting the ball impressively at the CA Championship at Doral — where his putter was uncooperative — two weeks ago, Woods finished only 50th in both fairways hit and greens in regulation here. But, of course, he led the field in putting.
"As I look back at my three tournaments I've played this year, I've gotten better at each one," he said, "And that was the whole idea was to keep progressing to Augusta."
What he rediscovered at Bay Hill was his almost supernatural ability to get the ball in the hole in the fewest shots from the most unlikely places. If his ball-striking improves and he scrambles like this at the Masters, he will be the deserved favorite for a fifth green jacket. "It does give me a lot of confidence going to Augusta because it's a validation of all the things I've been working on," Woods said.
Of course Woods won here because he got some help from Sean O'Hair, who held a five-stroke lead going into the final round.
But the young O'Hair, who has never finished the job with the 54-hole lead, stumbled at inopportune times. After three rounds in which he conducted a ball-striking clinic, in the heat of battle alongside Woods he was suddenly unable to find fairways.
"If you're in the rough all day, you're going to struggle to hit greens," he said of his final round three-over-par 73, six shots worse than Woods' 67.
"I didn't give myself enough birdie opportunities out there."
O'Hair bristled when asked whether he was in some way in awe of Woods.
"It's not like it's The Tiger Show and I'm just out there to watch him," he said, "We're trying to win golf tournaments and he just happens to be that good."
Woods started the day ominously, making birdie after majestic shots into the second and third holes to cut the deficit to two strokes after O'Hair bogeyed the third. O'Hair scrambled to hold his lead into the back nine but Woods finally caught him at five under par on the 15th hole courtesy of holing a long birdie putt.
The turning point, however, should have been on the brutally long par-4 16th. With Woods buried in the rough with no chance to get to the water-guarded green, O'Hair from the fairway didn't carry the ball far enough and saw it fall into the water. Woods hacked out to 101 yards and hit a gorgeous pitching wedge which resulted in a three-footer for par which he made.
O'Hair's bogey put him one back but Woods gave him an opening when he plugged into the lip of the front bunker at the long par-3 17th and could only make bogey, tying them again.
All it did was set the stage for the final hole, a natural amphitheater.
When Woods stalked his putt, a spectator yelled out, "Playoff!" Indeed, the Tour had made plans for the first playoff hole to begin at 10 a.m. Monday.
"I thought, 'Nah,'" said Woods.
----------
Source: http://msn.foxsports.com/golf/story/9395952/The-bigger-the-stage,-the-better-Woods-is?MSNHPHMA
More news:
Tiger is always great with a clench
Monday, March 30, 2009
Tiger Woods Is Back With A Bang!!
Tiger Woods has finally getting back in shape after winning the Arnold Palmer Invitational for the sixth time in history. Trailing by 5 shots going into the final round, Woods closed with a 3 under 67 for a one-shot victory over Sean O'Hair who ended with 3 over 73.
It was definitely D Day for Tiger Woods where he also matched his largest comeback on the PGA Tour. The most memorable moment of the game is on the 18th hole. This is the second consecutive year that Tiger Woods holed a birdie in the final hole of the final round to win at Bay Hill.
"It feels good to be back in contention, to feel the rush," Woods said. "It's been awhile, but God, it felt good."
---------------
Why I like golf?? Watch and feel for yourself!!!
msn news:
Tiger returns to winning at Bay Hill
http://msn.foxsports.com/golf/story/9389220/Tiger-returns-to-winning-at-Bay-Hill?MSNHPHMA
p/s: fact - always in a Red shirt on the final round!
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