Friday, November
22, 2002
Woods satisfied
with even par at Dunlop Phoenix
By JIM ARMSTRONG
Associated Press Writer
MIYAZAKI, Japan (AP)
- Tiger Woods was happy to be at par after the way he played Thursday.
Woods, in his first
tournament since the Tour Championship in Atlanta almost three
weeks ago, settled for a 71 Thursday at the $1.65 million Dunlop
Phoenix. He is seven strokes behind leader Darren Clarke of Northern
Ireland.
"To shoot even
par is a minor miracle," Woods said. "I didn't hit it
well and didn't putt well but managed to salvage the round with
a couple of birdies near the end."
Clarke, who is competing
in his fifth Dunlop Phoenix, has a two-stroke lead over England's
Justin Rose and Japan's Kaname Yokoo and Tsukasa Watanabe. Spanish
star Sergio Garcia topped a five-player group at 67.
Clarke had six birdies
on the front nine. He dropped a stroke with a bogey on No. 16,
but rebounded with birdies on Nos. 17 and 18.
"The changes
they've made to this course make it a lot more tricky," Clarke
said. "But I putted as well as I have in years and got a
couple of breaks that I made the most of."
Woods, playing in
his third tournament in Japan, had four birdies and four bogeys
in wet conditions at the 6,917-yard, par-71 Dunlop Phoenix Country
Club.
"The weather
wasn't really a factor," Woods said. "The fairways were
a bit soft but the cold didn't bother me at all."
Rose, who added an
eagle on No. 18 and finished with five birdies and a pair of bogeys,
said having Woods in the field had benefits.
"The field is
great with Tiger," Rose said. "There's a benefit to
having the No. 1 ranked player because you get extra world ranking
points for majors."
Woods, who started
play on the 10th hole, bogeyed the par-4 12th and 13th holes.
He three-putted the 12th green, then pulled his drive to the left
on the 13th before hitting a branch trying to blast it out of
the pine trees.
"I didn't put
myself out of the tournament," Woods said. "There were
a lot of guys who didn't make par, and I still have a chance to
win this."
Woods birdied the
16th and 17th holes to get back to even par but had consecutive
bogeys on No. 2 and No. 3.
"The bogey on
No. 2 was especially frustrating because I worked so hard to get
back to even par," said Woods.
Woods' second shot
on the par-4 No. 2 found the bunker in front of the green. His
sand wedge out of the trap landed 4 feet from the hole, and he
missed the par putt.
Woods birdied Nos.
4 and 7 before closing out with par on the final two holes.
Defending champion
David Duval shot a 69 with six birdies and two bogeys.
"I hit it all
over the place today," Duval said. "But 2-under with
three unplayables is pretty good. It was cold out there, and it's
always hard to get warmed up in those conditions."
Garcia, winner of
the Mercedes Championships, had four birdies, two bogeys and an
eagle on the par-5 No. 7.
"I had a great
drive in the middle of the fairway," Garcia said of his eagle.
"I hit it to about 35 feet and holed it and it felt great."
Garcia said it was
nice to put a little distance between himself and Woods.
"It's always
better when you're ahead of him, and the further the better,"
Garcia said. "But there are still three rounds left and when
I play well, I feel I can beat anyone."
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