|
The Magnificent Seven
Shark.com Staff
January 29, 2007
Some people need a little WD to wipe away the rust. Not Tiger Woods. He just needs a "W."
Woods started the Buick Invitational by making two bogeys in his first three holes at Torrey Pines' benign North Course. Now it just seems like that was Woods' way of spotting the field a couple of shots just to make things interesting.
Once he got past that stumble of a start, Woods looked in peak form as he played his next 69 holes in 17-under to win the Buick Invitational by two shots Sunday for his seventh consecutive PGA Tour win.
 | | Woods won the Buick for the third consecutive year and now has Byron Nelson's 62-year-old record of 11 consecutive PGA Tour wins clearly in his sight. |
"I was a little rusty," Woods said of those early bogeys. "After that, I settled into the competitive environment."
And everyone else can start settling for seconds, which Charles Howell did for the second time this season and the 10th time in his career. At least Howell made it interesting -- everybody else in contention once again flinched when Woods made his expected Sunday charge with a six-under 66 (the low round of the week on the difficult South Course, which next year hosts the U.S. Open).
Many believed Woods, based on his stellar play at the end of 2006, was poised to be as dominant as ever this season. He gave them no reason to believe otherwise as he won the Buick for the third consecutive year and now has Byron Nelson's 62-year-old record of 11 consecutive PGA Tour wins clearly in his sight.
Woods became just the second player in tour history to win seven in a row. Ben Hogan won six in a row in 1948, a number matched by Woods from late 1999 to early 2000. There's no question Woods' focus remains on the four majors, but he's not going to downplay this achievement.
"As far as how special seven is, you're in elite company. There's only one person that's ahead of you," Woods said. He's one of the greatest legends in the history of the game. To be in company like that with Mr. Nelson and Mr. Hogan up there as well, it's pretty special."
Woods would never admit it, but he didn't win with his "A game." He hit just nine-of-28 fairways on the weekend, but Woods chalked that up more to the drought that has dried out Torrey's fairways than the fact he hasn't competed in a tour event since October.
"The stats may not show I hit the fairways, but my misses were so much better," Woods said. "I could play these misses and I could easily fix these, which I did. They were not misses off the planet -- they were just off the fairway in the rough or bouncing in the bunker. That's how I know I've really improved over this off-season. My misses are getting so much better off the tees."
It doesn't hurt when you rank fifth in greens in regulation, ninth in bunkers or 19th in putting. Nor does it hurt when you have that uncanny ability to pull off the magical shot every time he needs it.
There was the eagle he drained at the 613-yard ninth hole or the 9-iron from 145 yards he fired to 3 feet at the 17th hole for a critical birdie to give him a two-shot lead over Howell heading to the 18th hole.
 | | Woods: "Winning breeds winning and the more you win, the more you understand how to do it." |
Game, set and match.
"I can only say, I've done it before, and know that I've done it," Woods said. "Some guys say they've done it before, but they have never done it on Sunday in a tournament before. Well, I've done it on Sunday in a major championship, so I know I can pull these shots off and I just keep reminding myself of these things.
"It's like what Jack (Nicklaus) had always said: Winning breeds winning and the more you win, the more you understand how to do it, and you do it different ways. I've done it with great ball-striking, I've done it with lousy ball-striking, I've done it with great putting and so-so putting and sometimes I've done it with my short game. If you're able to do it different ways, it just breeds more and more confidence when you're put in that situation again."
The win was the 55th of his PGA Tour career, but the first since Woods announced he and wife Elin are expecting their first child in July. Whether it was knowing he's becoming a father or not, Woods was in a buoyant mood all week at Torrey Pines.
He admits his mood was a stark contrast to the start of last year when he knew his father, Earl, didn't have long to live because cancer had spread throughout his body. Woods has gone from knowing he was going to lose a parent to knowing he'll soon become a parent.
"This year I'm looking forward to the year and what's going to transpire," Woods said. "Last year I was not looking forward to the year that was going to transpire. One is just praying and hoping and the other is just pure excitement and enjoyment. Two totally different mindsets."
Since missing the cut at last year's U.S. Open, Woods has been nearly unbeatable. Beyond the seven PGA Tour events, he's finished no worse than second in his last 13 stroke-play starts and is a combined 180 under par (scoring average 68.12).
Howell put it best afterward. "It ain't easy beating that guy," he said.
And it ain't going to get any easier.
| The Par Report is posted every Monday on Shark.com. It does not necessarily reflect the opinion of Greg Norman. |
|
| 
