Woods begins quest for five majors in a row
By PAUL NEWBERRY
AP Sports Writer
June 14, 2001
TULSA, Okla. (AP) -- Phil Mickelson and
56-year-old Hale Irwin started strong Thursday at
the U.S. Open, with Tiger Woods waiting to tee
off in his quest for an unprecedented fifth straight
major.
Mickelson, lumped with David Duval as the best players never to win a
major, stood at 2 under through 13 holes at Southern Hills Country Club. One
hole behind, Irwin had posted the same score.
Still playing on the front nine, Bernhard Langer and Matt Gogel also were at
2 under. Low score among early finishers in the opening round was turned in
by Argentina's Angel Cabrera, who took advantage of the first tee time to
shoot a par 70.
``I was very lucky,'' said Cabrera, who teed off at 7:30 a.m. EDT and played
nearly the entire round under gray clouds. ``The greens were not as fast,
there was not a lot of wind and not a lot of sun.''
Mickelson experienced an Open moment when he attempted a flop shot at
No. 9 from just below the green in the first cut of rough. He failed to clear a
ridge, the ball trickling back nearly to his feet.
Mickelson recovered with a nice up-and-down bogey, then birdied No. 10
after hitting a wedge to 3 feet of the flag. He also received a warning for
slow play at No. 12, lingering over a shot for too long after a U.S. Golf
Association official told his group to speed up.
Irwin, a three-time Open champion who now is a fixture on the seniors' tour,
showed he can still keep up with the youngsters. A year ago, he and Woods
were the only players to shoot two rounds in the 60s at Pebble Beach, with
Irwin winding up in a tie for 27th.
Woods was scheduled to tee off at 1:30 p.m. as an overwhelming favorite.
Already the only player to hold all four major professional titles, he's got the
complete package for the Open's challenging conditions.
``Tiger would be the first one to admit that he has to play well to win,'' Nick
Price said. ``The question is, when he plays well, can anyone beat him?
There are a few guys out there that can, but I would say this: You can
probably count them on one hand.''
The likely suspects are Mickelson, Duval, two-time Open winner Ernie Els,
Vijay Singh, perhaps even Sergio Garcia.
In a Tiger-free world, Colin Montgomerie might be considered a contender.
After all, he lost a three-way Open playoff in 1994 and was runner-up in '97.
Yet, when Monty was asked two weeks ago if he thought he was playing
well enough to win the Open, he glared at the reporter before replying:
``Why? Is Tiger injured?''
There was briefly a Nicklaus atop the leaderboard, only this was Jack's son.
Gary Nicklaus birdied the second hole, but a double-bogey at No. 7 left him
2-over.
Jack Nicklaus, whose streak of 44 straight Opens ended last year at Pebble
Beach, was on hand to watch.
The only thing bothering Woods this week was a mosquito bite, which caused
him to wince and grab his upper back during a practice round Wednesday.
``I had an itch. Right in the middle of my back, too, that one spot where you
can't reach it,'' he said, stopping to demonstrate.
Southern Hills is an American classic -- bending, tree-lined fairways and
heavily contoured greens, a combination that requires players to think their
way around in the suffocating Oklahoma heat.
On any course, Woods is the man to beat.
``I think certain players, he plays with their minds,'' Lee
Westwood said.
If anyone still needs proof of Woods' dominance, they
need to look no further than Las Vegas, where people
actually back their words with cash.
It's there that Woods is the biggest favorite ever to win a
golf tournament -- and people are still lining up to put
money on him.
``How do you blame them? Every time you bet him, you cash a ticket,'' said
Jeff Sherman, golf oddsmaker at the Regent hotel-casino sports book.
In a sport where bettors once got 8-1 odds on the favorite, Woods is an
unheard-of even-money pick. That means bettors have to put up $10 to win
$10, while the same bet on Els at 20-1 would net $200.
The odds have shrunk during Woods' streak, which began with a 15-stroke
victory at last year's Open. He was a 3-1 pick at Pebble Beach, but dropped
to 3-2 for the Masters this year.
If Woods wins at Southern Hills, he'll go into the British Open at even shorter
odds.
``He's transcended the way golf wagering is evolving,'' Sherman said. ``What
he's doing is simply amazing.'' |
