Sunday, June 18, 2000
You want some drama? Don't
look for it here
By Neil Hayes
Knight Ridder Newspapers
PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. — Ernie Els had
just shot the lowest score of the day, a 3-under-par 68 that the
two-time U.S. Open champion called “one of the best rounds
I've ever played in major golf considering the weather conditions.”
And what did Els get for his considerable
effort? A severe case of windburn and the honor of accompanying
Tiger Woods on what can only be his 18-hole victory lap at Pebble
Beach Golf Links during today's final round of the 100th U.S.
Open.
“We can talk and talk, but the bottom
line is the guy is very, very good and he knows he's very, very
good,” Els said. “And when you have a guy with that
much talent and that much confidence playing that well ... What
do you do?”
You can either hope he's disqualified for
signing an incorrect scorecard or you can start piling praise
at his cleated feet. Considering the odds of the former, most
players chose the latter after Woods shot even par to take a 10-stroke
lead over Els, the biggest 54-hole lead in U.S. Open history.
“It's his tournament unless something
really dramatic happens,” said Jose Maria Olazabal. “He's
the winner already.”
Els wanted to believe he had put himself
in position to challenge Woods but wasn't sure because Woods was
still playing the front nine when Els was done.
But Els had reason to be optimistic because
by the time he reached the seventh tee, the wind was whipping
whitecaps across Carmel Bay, resulting in conditions that were
as difficult as any he has ever encountered.
As if he needed help, Woods benefited from
fortuitous starting times during the first two rounds. He was
off the course before the heavy fog rolled in Thursday and the
wind died down before he was introduced on the first tee on Friday.
So there was every reason for Els to believe
this was where Pebble Beach would bare its teeth and draw some
of Tiger's blood. If nobody could make a run at the runaway leader,
perhaps Woods would fall back to the pack.
Finally, it was time for the course to exact
revenge, and you know those trailing Woods were more than a little
delighted by that prospect.
“I feel that Tiger has had the best
end of the draw,” Els said. “I don't want to sound like
a crybaby here, but that's the way I see it.”
By the time Woods reached the treacherous
ocean holes, however, the wind, which had been gusting to 35 mph
all afternoon, quit howling. On the seventh tee, Woods threw grass
in the air to gauge wind direction. It landed on his shoes.
Chasing Woods this week has been frustrating
enough. As if watching him recover from a potentially disastrous
triple-bogey 7 on the third hole wasn't deflating enough, Mother
Nature hands him another gift.
Els was probably back in his room relaxing
by then, but you couldn't have blamed him if he was grinding the
enamel off his teeth after arriving at the same conclusion that
Rocco Mediate arrived at after his round.
“He's just better at all aspects of
the game, especially mentally,” Mediate said. “A lot
of people have trouble ... You hear a lot of comments, some of
the comments Davis (Love III) and Colin (Montgomerie) have made,
but the truth is the truth. He's the best. Yeah, he can be beat,
but over 11, 12 years the rest of us have no chance.”
If there ever was a chance for a player
with a substantial lead to blow up, this was it, or so it seemed.
Even though the wind had died down, many of the greens were turning
brown and shots bounced like super balls after hitting them.
Considering the stakes, the triple bogey
would've been enough to rattle anyone. But when he dumped a second
ball in tall grass around the lip of a bunker on the sixth, he
made an amazing recovery and somehow ended up with a birdie.
“These are the smallest greens we play
in the world,” Bobby Clampett said. “Then, all of a
sudden, you drop the water off them. And throw in deep rough around
the greens and narrow fairways. It's phenomenal what he's doing
out there.
“It's almost getting to the point where
everybody is playing for second every week. If he plays anywhere
near where he's capable of playing, everyone's playing for second.
He's got so much confidence right now. ... He's untouchable right
now.”
So untouchable, in fact, that he's made
playing one of the toughest Open courses anyone can remember look
remarkably easy and sucked all the drama out of what is traditionally
one of the most dramatic days on golf's calendar.
Readers can contact Neil Hayes by phone
at 925-943-8338, by fax at 930-6150, by e-mail at nhayes@cctimes.com
or by writing to P.O. Box 8099, Walnut Creek, CA 94596-8099.
(c) 2000, Contra Costa Times
(Walnut Creek, Calif.).
Visit the Contra Costa Times on the Web at http://www.cctimes.com/
Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Information Services.
|
