Woods chalks up win number 57 at Wachovia
IN: News | US PGA | Wachovia Championship (2007) | Wrap | by Bruce Young | 07 May 2007
Just ten years and eight months after his first start as a professional on the USPGA Tour, Tiger Woods today won his 57th USPGA Tour title taking him within sixteen of the man he looks to surpass of the greatest ever player Jack Nicklaus. Nicklaus’ victories however were over a span of 24 years compared to the near eleven of Woods.
At a similar stage of his professional career the number of Nicklaus victories was about seven PGA Tour victories and one Major championship short of where Tiger is now, but in Nicklaus’ defence is the fact that he continued winning for another 13 years beyond. Whether Woods will do that remains to be seen but at this stage of their respective careers, Woods has the ascendancy.
Woods was again brilliant this week when winning the Wachovia Championship by two shots this week, not always at his best but still able to get the job done against the strongest of fields and on one of the more demanding regular tour stops.
Woods started the day one behind Rory Sabbatini but by the turn he had control of the event. His first birdie came at the 4th after a huge tee shot set up a short approach. Although he hit a poor pitch he holed the 20 footer and he was on his way. He flirted with the water from the tee at the par five 7th but holed a monster 60 foot putt down the green for eagle and then followed up with consecutive birdies to turn in five under 31 and it appeared to be a case of not if, but by how many he would win.
A missed short putt at the 10th cost him a bogey but it would be the par three 13th that gave his chaser some hope, if only temporarily. Woods tee shot was a horror and was right of the right hand greenside trap. He pitched past the flag but three putted and he was back to just 13 under and then only one ahead of Steve Stricker.
Stricker, who returned from a golfing wilderness in 2006 with 7 top tens and a return to the game that saw him as one of the PGA Tour’s leading lights in the mid 1990’s, stumbled at the 16th after he pulled his tee shot and then found the bunker with his approach and took double bogey. His challenge appeared gone but he bounced back with a 25 foot birdie putt at the 17th to move within two and, when Woods bogeyed the 17th after missing the green right, the difference was just one.
Stricker was playing ahead of Woods and importantly found the
fairway from the tee at the last. As Tiger was missing his par
saving putt at the 17th Stricker turned over his iron into the
last and found the creek alongside the green. He was able to save
bogey but it provided Woods with a two shot cushion which was
welcome given some of the
last hole disasters witnessed at this event in its short history.
Woods found the fairway from with a three wood from the tee but hit a poor second which finished short and right of the greenside bunker and some 40 yards from the hole. He hit a superb pitch from the rough to 12 feet and when he holed that Woods had won by two over Stricker and by four over Phil Mickelson and Rory Sabbatini.
Woods now heads to The Players Championship where despite the fact that he does not boast a great record by his high standards he will be the raging hot favourite to win.
The best of the Australians was John Senden who despite a last hole double bogey recorded a 10th place finish. It was Sendens’ 10th cut made in 11 starts in 2007 and he continues to stake his claims for another PGA Tour victory to go with his John Deere Classic win of last year.
Rod Pampling will rue a series of dropped shots over the closing stages of the event but he finished 16th and like Senden has been very consistent this year and has his game in good shape for Sawgrass next week.
Adam Scott and Geoff Ogilvy were 24th, Nathan Green, Mathew Goggin, Robert Allenby and Nick O’Hern were 34th, Aaron Baddeley 43rd, Gavin Coles 77th, and Stephen Leaney 79th.
