A special morning with Tiger
BY Bruce Young | Australasian PGA Tour | 2009 Australian Masters | General | 11 Nov 2009
Tiger Woods, Kingston Heath and a perfect Melbourne morning sounds like heaven for a golf fan and so it was this morning when Woods attended to Pro-Am duties in front of a crowd of around 5000. The amazing thing about this morning’s outing is that no-one seemed to miss out on the chance to see him at close quarters at some stage at least and he seemed to enjoy the relaxed atmosphere that prevailed.
It would be hard to imagine that anyone who left Kingston Heath early this afternoon would have done so unhappy in both what they saw and the amount of shots they got to see Woods play.
Tomorrow when a crowd of 20,000 is expected to flock to the layout to witness round one it might be a different story but those who chose to pay the small entrance fee for Tuesday’s practice round and today’s Pro Am will cherish a special moment with arguably the greatest player ever and on one of the world’s great golf courses.
By my calculations, and allowing for the fact that several very short putts were taken for granted, Woods played the front nine at Kingston Heath in five under the first time he ever set eyes on it. He had played the back nine in his first look at the course yesterday and today as he engaged with his Pro-Am partners and several others who joined him inside the ropes he looked completely at ease with the layout.
If today’s effort was any indication, then those who feel the rather foreign layout might prove bothersome for Woods can think again. Admittedly he played in the most benign of morning conditions but it was clear he was learning as he went and when the gun goes tomorrow he will be sufficiently prepared to tackle whatever Kingston Heath throws at him.
He might not win but it won’t be a lack of understanding of sandbelt golf that holds him back.
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