Sunday, June 17, 2001
Tracking Tiger: Still prowling
way behind leaders
By JOHN LINDSAY
Scripps Howard News Service
TULSA, Okla. — Tracking Tiger Woods
Saturday at the third round of the 101st United States Open Championship
from Southern Hills: — SCORE: Tiger showed some bite Saturday,
shooting a 1-under par 69, his best round of the tournament. But
late in the afternoon, he was still eight shots behind the leaders.
No player has ever overcome that large a final-round deficit to
win a U.S. Open.
— SHOT OF THE DAY: Tiger looked like
his dominating self with a brilliant 4-iron into the 225-yard,
par-3 8th hole. The ball settled in within five feet setting up
Tiger's second birdie of the day.
— WHOOPS!: Talk about deja-vu —
the wrong way. Tiger again fell prey to the 374-yard, par-4 ninth
hole. Just as he did in making a double bogey in the first round,
Woods clanked his sand wedge approach off a tree and into the
right sand trap. With a terrible lie, Tiger blasted out over the
green. He saved a bogey that nonetheless stalled his comeback
hopes.
Later, his approach from the rough hit another
tree on No. 12, leading to a bogey. He then missed a 5-footer
for birdie on the 534-yard, par-5 13th that pretty much sealed
an also-ran finish.
— HOW DID HE DO THAT?: Woods reached
the greenside bunker of the 642-yard, par-5 fifth (the longest
hole in Open history) in two shots. After a drive of nearly 350
yards, Woods lashed a 2-iron into the bunker on the left side
of the green. Tiger made the sand save for his first birdie of
the day.
— LOOK OUT FOR ... Who would have thought
Tiger's worst finish ever in a major as a professional? Late in
the day, Tiger was mired at 25th. His previous worst professional
major finish was a tie for 29th at the 1997 PGA at Winged Foot.
— ON THE COURSE: After playing two
days with Tiger, U.S. Amateur champion Jeff Quinney says he emerged
a better man for it — and earned some respect from Woods,
a three-time Amateur champ.
Quinney opened Thursday with a disastrous
10-over 45 on the front nine, before the rains came. He rallied
Friday finishing with a 2-over 37 on the back to finish at 82.
He carded a respectable 3-over 73 in the second round, but missed
the cut at 155.
“He has that aura about him where you're
really intimidated,” Quinney said. “I think even the
top guys are intimidated a little. After the round he walked up
and said 'I know you didn't finish the way you wanted to, but
you handled yourself well, and you never gave up. I'm proud of
you for that.' That meant a lot.”
Elsewhere, the panic that swept the course
Friday when Woods flirted with missing the cut subsided.
“I'd have sold my tickets and gone
back to Oklahoma City if he'd missed the cut,” said 13-year-old
Kyle Hudelson. “You would have had to give away tickets.
He's the only reason people came to this tournament.”
— GRADE: B-. Too big a hole, too many
mistakes. Tiger looked better Saturday, making four birdies —
one more than the first two rounds combined — while narrowly
missing several others. Maybe if he had opened with a 69, he'd
have a chance. But there are too many superior players too far
ahead. Tiger has been just another player this week. And who would
have imagined that?
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