Tiger is the target at Augusta
By Ed Sherman / Chicago Tribune
AUGUSTA, Ga. -- They won't say it publicly, because it goes
against the code of golf.
But you know the feeling is there. You can sense it in some
of their answers when they strain to say the right thing.
They don't want to offend him, and they all want to give him
his due. And yet they all have the same two wishes this week.
No. 1: I hope I win.
No. 2: If I don't, anybody but Tiger Woods.
Tiger-hunting season officially begins Thursday when the Masters
tees off at Augusta National. If this were a fight card, the billing
would read, "Tiger Woods vs. the field."
It is one year since Woods' march through Georgia, and the
electricity level hasn't dimmed one bit. When Woods emerged to
play a practice round late Monday afternoon, the fans rushed to
the first tee as if he were giving out free individual lessons.
Tiger mania still burns even though he flopped in last season's
three other majors. Those tournaments produced terrific stories
and exciting champions -- Ernie Els, Justin Leonard and Davis
Love III.
But none of those winners electrified the golf world the way
Woods did, and none performed his feat on golf's biggest stage.
If Woods does it again this weekend, the PGA Tour continues to
be "Tiger and those other guys."
So that's why there has been a call to arms -- make that clubs
-- this week. It's not that the players dislike Woods, although
some do. It's that they hate being bit players in his Augusta
production.
"I'm sure he's going to make your Friday newspaper's headlines
whether he is leading or not," Colin Montgomerie said.
Montgomerie was cast as villain to Woods' superhero last year.
Trailing Woods by three shots after the second round, Montgomerie
threw down the challenge, saying he couldn't wait to get a chance
at Woods in the third round. Woods merely blew him away by nine
shots, 65-74.
Jack Nicklaus says Woods can pull another "Full Monty"
on the field this year. He might have provided inspiration for
the field when he forecast Woods would win again even if he only
plays a "fair game."
When asked if that meant everyone else was playing for second,
Love wouldn't bite.
"I'm not even going to answer that," he said.
The fact is professionals, with egos as big as their wallets,
were embarrassed last year when Woods lapped the field by 12 strokes.
"It won't happen again this year," Steve Elkington
said. "He may win again, but it is not going to be a runaway."
Tom Watson believes if it is a closer tournament this year,
it will be because of Woods' effect on the field. Watson, a two-time
Masters winner, says Woods set the bar last year with his performance
and, like any athletes, his competitors are trying to match it.
"The score Tiger shot last year was a wakeup call to the
rest of the professional tour," Watson said. "It does
make you say, ÔThis guy's really good. We have to elevate
our level of play.'
"That's what Nicklaus did when he came on Tour and Arnold
was the king. I think that rivalry elevated play on the Tour.
Use them as benchmarks and standards."
When asked about Watson's assessment, Love chose his words
carefully again. After all, he also won a major last year.
"I probably shouldn't answer that, either," Love
said. "I'll step on somebody's toes."
Love, though, did answer.
"I think the general feeling with the players is that
no one player can win every tournament," Love said. "There
are a lot of tournaments. The best players are going to get their
share. Nobody's going to win 20 of the same tournament in a row.
"I think we're getting a little bit overboard to think
any one player -- whether it's Ernie Els, Lee Westwood or Colin
Montgomerie -- will win every tournament every week."
Interestingly, Love didn't mention Woods. It wasn't an oversight
as much as an attempt to make the point that there are other players
out there. In fact, the quality of top players on the Tour is
the strongest in years.
The list of contenders runs from new rising stars like Leonard
and David Duval to 40-something veterans like Nick Faldo and Greg
Norman. There is great anticipation for a Woods-Els showdown,
which could launch this generation's equivalent to Nicklaus-Palmer
or Hogan-Nelson. Watson calls the new breed, "Ernie Woods."
The Ernie part, though, was trying to downplay any rivalry.
"Rivalry? I don't know," Els said. "If you want
to talk about a rivalry, that will come if we can play well in
the major championships. Maybe this is the start of it. But we're
just two of 20 really good young players out there."
Woods, for his part, also stayed away from pre-tournament trash-talking.
Who's your biggest rival this week?
"Every player in the field," Woods responded.
Even 75-year-old Doug Ford, the Masters champ in 1957?
Woods smiled but didn't relent.
"As I said, every player in the field."
Imagine that headline: "Great-grandchildren cheer Ford's
victory over Woods."
Assuming Ford doesn't take a bath in the fountain of eternal
youth, all eyes will be on Woods. Tiger is his nickname, but he
also will be the rabbit Thursday.
Woods is expected to set the pace, and the rest of the field
will try to catch up.
"If he plays particularly well and putts the way he did
last year, we have a real battle on our hands," Montgomerie
said. "It's a very interesting position for us all on Thursday,
to see how he reacts to situations and see how he does."
Woods, the field and the world can't wait to find out.
(c) 1998, Chicago Tribune.
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