Thursday, July 5, 2001
Refreshed Woods looking for third win at
Western Open
By NANCY ARMOUR
AP Sports Writer
LEMONT, Ill. (AP) — Even Tiger Woods needs some time off
once in awhile.
After two straight finishes out of the top 10 — that practically
counts as a slump when you're talking about the world's No. 1
golfer — Woods stashed his clubs, grabbed a couple of buddies
and headed to Alaska to go fishing.
“I really needed to get away because I've played golf a lot,”
he said Wednesday. “My weeks off, I didn't really take a
whole lot of time off because I was practicing, getting ready
for the (U.S.) Open. So it was nice to get away, put the clubs
down and just get away for a little bit.”
Refreshed and relaxed, he's ready to get back to work this week.
And he's playing in one of his favorite tournaments, the Western
Open.
Woods has quite a history here, particularly in odd-numbered years.
He made his first cut in a PGA Tour event here in 1995 and then
won the tournament in 1997 and 1999. He also broke 70 as a pro
for the first time in the fourth round in 1995.
“That's where I felt was a turning point in my amateur career,”
he said. “I felt like, `Yeah, I can really play with these
guys.'”
He's done more than that. With a victory at the Masters in April,
Woods held all four major championships for a Grand Slam.
But talk of Woods sweeping the majors in the same calendar year
came to a sudden halt at the U.S. Open, where he finished tied
for 12th. He struggled again the next week at the Buick Classic,
where he finished 12 strokes back in a tie for 16th.
It was his lowest finish in 23 events, and the first time since
1999 that he finished out of the top 10 in consecutive weeks.
“It wasn't necessarily the energy, it was that I wasn't swinging
well,” Woods said. “You can have all the energy in the
world, but if you're not swinging well, you're not swinging well.”
His putting was fine, Woods said. It was his drives and iron shots
that were the problem.
“At the U.S. Open, if I didn't putt, I would have been further
down the road,” he said. “I made at least eight or 10
putts from 12 feet and in every day. I poured them in like they
were going out of style.
“Unfortunately, they were for pars. I wasn't in a position
to make birdies,” he added. “I wasn't able to hit the
ball close enough.”
So he put his clubs away after the Buick Classic and didn't touch
them again for six days. He and three friends went on a five-day
fishing trip, with golf the furthest thing from his mind.
Of course, he had a few other things to worry about. Like the
bears rambling around the river where he was fishing.
Woods finally picked up his clubs again Sunday, when he did a
children's clinic in Rockford. He's spent the past few days practicing,
and his swing is finally coming around.
“I've been practicing a little bit the last few days and
hitting it a little more crisp,” he said. “It was nice
to get back out here and walk the course.”
Woods wasn't the only one who needed some time off after the U.S.
Open. Phil Mickelson skipped the Buick Classic after shooting
a final-round 75 at the U.S. Open, the latest in a series of big-tournament
fades.
Mickelson didn't touch his clubs, either, instead pulling out
his old psychology notebooks and practicing some visualization
techniques. The homework helped, as he won the Greater Hartford
Open last weekend.
“I don't think it's really squelched talk. I think it's postponed
it for a week or two,” Mickelson said of his failure to win
a major. “What I need to do really is to come through in
a major championship, and I realize that.
”... I feel as though I keep getting closer. Last week certainly
helped for me personally, because it gave me a direction on how
to prepare mentally and how to perform during the round mentally
for me to play my best golf.”
Divots: David Berganio Jr. withdrew Wednesday. Hunter Haas will
take his place. ... The Western Open, sponsored by Advil, has
a record $3.6 million purse, with the winner earning $648,000.
... Some changes have been made to Cog Hill's Dubsdread Course.
A new No. 2, which plays about 22 yards shorter, is being used,
and the par-4 13th has been lengthened. The par-5 15th can also
play 10 yards longer. “I thought 13 was long enough already,”
1998 champion Joe Durant said. “It was for me, anyway.”
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