abc execs are up on the ledge ready to jump if tiger loses as are the sponsors and all.
i went to this last year when they got to where there were 16 left. there were TONS of people following tiger and whoever he was golfing against - and hardly anyone following the other pairings.
if elin's hubby loses this one - look for mass suicides by all with $$$ invested in this thing.
i went to this last year when they got to where there were 16 left. there were TONS of people following tiger and whoever he was golfing against - and hardly anyone following the other pairings.
if elin's hubby loses this one - look for mass suicides by all with $$$ invested in this thing.
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ca...qM5ipLsKKF6LNUDVDbTHaXLRAdw_uyw?docId=6043905
Lost in the desert, Tiger Woods knocked out of first round of Match Play
By Doug Ferguson (CP) – 21 minutes ago
MARANA, Ariz. — The slow road back for Tiger Woods took another detour Wednesday when he followed a clutch birdie with a shocking shot into the desert and lost to Thomas Bjorn in the first round of the Match Play Championship.
It was only the second time that Woods, the No. 3 seed, had been eliminated in the first round.
But this was stunning even to Woods.
Moments after he made an eight-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole to extend the match, he hit a three-wood so far to the right that it landed in a desert bush. It took two shots just to get it back onto the grass. After badly missing an 18-foot bogey putt, he conceded to Bjorn.
"I blew it," Woods said.
Twice he had simple chips on the back nine and failed to convert them into birdies, losing his lead on the 13th and falling behind on the 15th. He missed a 10-foot birdie on the 17th that he figured he should make "every time."
And then came No. 1, the first extra hole.
"It's easy to put the ball in the fairway and I couldn't even do that," Woods said, so visibly upset that he was stumbling over his words.
The other top seeds didn't have that much trouble.
Top-ranked Lee Westwood never trailed in his 3-and-2 victory over Henrik Stenson, while PGA champion Martin Kaymer had the shortest match of the opening round, a 7-and-6 win over 19-year-old Seung-yul Noh of South Korea.
Phil Mickelson, the No. 4 seed who only decided to play this World Golf Championship two weeks ago, won 6-and-5 over Brendan Jones.
Woods had some company in going home early.
The Americans had four of the top 10 seeds at Dove Mountain, and Mickelson is the only one left. Matteo Manassero, the 17-year-old Italian, became the youngest winner in this tournament with a 2-and-1 victory over eighth-seeded Steve Stricker, while Jim Furyk (No. 10) continued his struggles in losing to Ryan Palmer, who was making his Match Play debut.
Coming off the worst season of his career, most of that from the crisis in his personal life, Woods does not appear to be making any progress. Through three tournaments this year, he has failed to crack the top 20.
Woods keeps talking about needing more repetition as he works on a new swing, although he is not playing more tournament. Asked if he might add the Honda Classic, Woods replied, "Probably now is not the time to ask me right now."
He next is likely to play the Cadillac Championship at Doral in two weeks, with Bay Hill two weeks after that. One possibility is the Transitions Championship outside Tampa, Fla., which is the week between Doral and Bay Hill.
It was the second time Bjorn has beaten Woods head-to-head, although not in this format. Ten years ago, they went 72 holes together in the Dubai Desert Classic, with Woods putting his shot into the water on the last hole to make double bogey.
Bjorn was gracious in victory, saying that Woods is not playing "his absolute best right now." although he still saw some good swings.
Others piled on.
When asked about the youth movement in golf, especially after Manassero won his match, Rory McIlroy said all the young players feel they are good enough to compete with the likes of Woods, Mickelson, Stricker and Furyk.
"I mean, I don't think Tiger and Phil have got any ... well, yeah, I mean I don't think Phil has gotten any worse," McIlroy said after his 4-and-2 win over Jonathan Byrd. "Tiger isn't as dominant as he used to be, and Phil won the Masters last year."
Then came a tweet from Hank Haney, the swing coach from whom Woods split a year ago in May.
"For all the talk of Tiger's poor driving the last six years I have never seen him drive it out of play with a match or tournament on the line," Haney said on Twitter.
Copyright © 2011 The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
Lost in the desert, Tiger Woods knocked out of first round of Match Play
By Doug Ferguson (CP) – 21 minutes ago
MARANA, Ariz. — The slow road back for Tiger Woods took another detour Wednesday when he followed a clutch birdie with a shocking shot into the desert and lost to Thomas Bjorn in the first round of the Match Play Championship.
It was only the second time that Woods, the No. 3 seed, had been eliminated in the first round.
But this was stunning even to Woods.
Moments after he made an eight-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole to extend the match, he hit a three-wood so far to the right that it landed in a desert bush. It took two shots just to get it back onto the grass. After badly missing an 18-foot bogey putt, he conceded to Bjorn.
"I blew it," Woods said.
Twice he had simple chips on the back nine and failed to convert them into birdies, losing his lead on the 13th and falling behind on the 15th. He missed a 10-foot birdie on the 17th that he figured he should make "every time."
And then came No. 1, the first extra hole.
"It's easy to put the ball in the fairway and I couldn't even do that," Woods said, so visibly upset that he was stumbling over his words.
The other top seeds didn't have that much trouble.
Top-ranked Lee Westwood never trailed in his 3-and-2 victory over Henrik Stenson, while PGA champion Martin Kaymer had the shortest match of the opening round, a 7-and-6 win over 19-year-old Seung-yul Noh of South Korea.
Phil Mickelson, the No. 4 seed who only decided to play this World Golf Championship two weeks ago, won 6-and-5 over Brendan Jones.
Woods had some company in going home early.
The Americans had four of the top 10 seeds at Dove Mountain, and Mickelson is the only one left. Matteo Manassero, the 17-year-old Italian, became the youngest winner in this tournament with a 2-and-1 victory over eighth-seeded Steve Stricker, while Jim Furyk (No. 10) continued his struggles in losing to Ryan Palmer, who was making his Match Play debut.
Coming off the worst season of his career, most of that from the crisis in his personal life, Woods does not appear to be making any progress. Through three tournaments this year, he has failed to crack the top 20.
Woods keeps talking about needing more repetition as he works on a new swing, although he is not playing more tournament. Asked if he might add the Honda Classic, Woods replied, "Probably now is not the time to ask me right now."
He next is likely to play the Cadillac Championship at Doral in two weeks, with Bay Hill two weeks after that. One possibility is the Transitions Championship outside Tampa, Fla., which is the week between Doral and Bay Hill.
It was the second time Bjorn has beaten Woods head-to-head, although not in this format. Ten years ago, they went 72 holes together in the Dubai Desert Classic, with Woods putting his shot into the water on the last hole to make double bogey.
Bjorn was gracious in victory, saying that Woods is not playing "his absolute best right now." although he still saw some good swings.
Others piled on.
When asked about the youth movement in golf, especially after Manassero won his match, Rory McIlroy said all the young players feel they are good enough to compete with the likes of Woods, Mickelson, Stricker and Furyk.
"I mean, I don't think Tiger and Phil have got any ... well, yeah, I mean I don't think Phil has gotten any worse," McIlroy said after his 4-and-2 win over Jonathan Byrd. "Tiger isn't as dominant as he used to be, and Phil won the Masters last year."
Then came a tweet from Hank Haney, the swing coach from whom Woods split a year ago in May.
"For all the talk of Tiger's poor driving the last six years I have never seen him drive it out of play with a match or tournament on the line," Haney said on Twitter.
Copyright © 2011 The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
http://www.cbssports.com/golf/blog/...r-woods-says-hes-full-go-for-the-british-open
[h=1]Tiger Woods says he's 'full go' for the British Open[/h]By Kyle Porter | Golf Writer
<time class="storyDate" pubdate="" datetime="2013-07-14T17:55:24Z">July 14, 2013 1:55 pm</time><!-- Render Google +1 button --><!-- Render Stumble Upon button -->
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<figcaption>Tiger Woods prepares for the British Open. (USATSI)</figcaption> </figure>More Golf: Leaderboard | Rankings | Schedule | Expert Picks | Equipment | FedEx Cup
Tiger Woods flew to Scotland late on Saturday night and arrived in Edinburgh at 8 a.m. local time to start preperation for the British Open.
He played a practice round with Jason Day and Dustin Johnson (as confirmed by Johnson's Twitter feed below) and said, all things considered (namely, that left elbow), he's ready to go for the tournament.
Woods' most recent tournament appearance at Muirfield wasn't as sunny as his attitude on Sunday. He finished T28 after a third-round (and career-worst) 81 in an insane rainstorm in 2002.
According to this ESPN article, Woods talked a little bit about that experience during his round on Sunday.
We all know the course conditions can change on a dime in Scotland, though, and Woods knows he has to be prepared for anything.
Other than that, we don't know much else about what Woods will do at his third major of the year. We think he'll be healthy and he should compete. But this is Scotland, and rarely in Scottish golf do things go as planned.
One thing's for sure, though. No matter what happens with Woods -- no matter if he wins or misses the cut -- the entire experience will be great drama.
I can't wait.
[h=1]Tiger Woods says he's 'full go' for the British Open[/h]By Kyle Porter | Golf Writer
<time class="storyDate" pubdate="" datetime="2013-07-14T17:55:24Z">July 14, 2013 1:55 pm</time><!-- Render Google +1 button --><!-- Render Stumble Upon button -->
<figure>
Tiger Woods flew to Scotland late on Saturday night and arrived in Edinburgh at 8 a.m. local time to start preperation for the British Open.
He played a practice round with Jason Day and Dustin Johnson (as confirmed by Johnson's Twitter feed below) and said, all things considered (namely, that left elbow), he's ready to go for the tournament.
Played a practice round with Tiger and Jason Day today!! #Muirfield #OpenChamp
— Dustin Johnson (@DJohnsonPGA) July 14, 2013
Here's what Woods wrote on his website (tigerwoods.com) last week:— Dustin Johnson (@DJohnsonPGA) July 14, 2013
"I started chipping and putting a little over a week ago and I'm full go for the British Open."
"That's why I took the time off, so it could heal, and I would feel comfortable playing again. I'm still taking anti-inflammatory medication for my elbow and getting treatment, but the big thing at Muirfield Golf Club will be to avoid the rough."
Yeah, avoiding the rough at a British Open is usually a good idea.Woods' most recent tournament appearance at Muirfield wasn't as sunny as his attitude on Sunday. He finished T28 after a third-round (and career-worst) 81 in an insane rainstorm in 2002.
According to this ESPN article, Woods talked a little bit about that experience during his round on Sunday.
"As he played the par-5 fifth under sunny skies and a cool breeze, Woods laughed as he recalled what it was like during that storm 11 years ago. He said he needed driver, 2-iron, 2-iron to reach the green."
The course is playing way different now, though. It's harder and drier than usual. Tiger apparently hit a 4-iron 285 yards on Sunday. A 4-iron!We all know the course conditions can change on a dime in Scotland, though, and Woods knows he has to be prepared for anything.
Other than that, we don't know much else about what Woods will do at his third major of the year. We think he'll be healthy and he should compete. But this is Scotland, and rarely in Scottish golf do things go as planned.
One thing's for sure, though. No matter what happens with Woods -- no matter if he wins or misses the cut -- the entire experience will be great drama.
I can't wait.
