MEDINAH, Ill. – There’s nothing wrong with giving people the benefit of the doubt. Like, maybe Terrell Owens really is injured and can’t practice. Or, maybe Floyd Landis really does have the testosterone of 10 men.
And so the thought emerged, yet again, Saturday night: Maybe somebody really can beat Tiger Woods when hes leading after 54 holes of a major championship.
Fool. Fool. Damn fool.
“He’s not going to win them all,” U.S. Open champion Geoff Ogilvy said after the third round. “He’s pretty special, but he’s not unbeatable.”
In this situation, Geoff, yes, yes he is. Woods is now a perfect 12-0 when holding at least a share of the 54-hole lead in a major. 12 and 0. The other 69 men who made the cut this week have barely combined to have 12 such opportunities.
Some get annoyed when the media slather Woods in praise. But, without question, the man deserves it. He deserves all of it. The greatest of the great make extreme difficulty seem simple. That’s what Woods is doing.
Woods is now two-thirds of the way to Jack Nicklaus’ all-time major victories record of 18, arriving at that number in just 10 full seasons on the PGA Tour – and three years earlier than Jack.
Tiger winning 18 or 19 or more, appears to be a formality. Assuming that he stays healthy, you’ve got to give him at least three more green jackets over the next decade, which means he only has to win one more at each of the other three majors to match that mark.
You’d think a healthy Woods can handle that.
Tiger’s not just the most talented player in the world; he’s the most complete. They try to ‘Tiger proof’ courses, but that doesn’t work anymore. And as he’s displayed at these last two majors, he can adapt his game.
He can win at even par; he can win at 24 under. He can win by hitting iron off most every tee; he can win on the longest course in major championship history. He can win in the wind and the rain; he can win in the sun and the shine.
He can beat you when you’re playing you’re best; he can beat you when he’s not.
Players love to say that they can’t worry about what Tiger is doing. “I just have to play my own game,” they say – and so many said it once again Saturday evening. But they do have to worry about Tiger, because their game can’t beat his game.
They should be saying, I need to play my best on Sunday and hope that Tiger gets attacked by a wolverine.
All this considered: Is it that improbable to see Woods doubling his figures, in Tour victories (51) and major wins (12), over the next 10 years?
“Not at all,” said three-time major winner and Hall of Fame member Nick Price. “One-hundred wins, 20-25 majors. That’s entirely possible. How much he wins is (determined by) how long he wants to play.”
Major No. 12 came in typical Tiger fashion, meaning he did what was necessary while his “peers” did not. Woods entered the final round tied with Luke Donald, with four others within four shots. Of those players, Woods shot the lowest score on Sunday, a 4-under 68. Donald shot 74.
Woods won by five strokes and is now second to only Nicklaus in career majors won, passing Walter Hagen.
This was his third PGA Championship triumph, and his second at Medinah (1999). He’s now just one U.S. Open win away from completing his third trip around the career Grand Slam, something only Nicklaus has done (no other full-time player on Tour today has more than three career majors of any kind).
By winning this week, and adding to his Open Championship victory a month ago, he captured multiple major titles in the same season for the fourth time in his career (Nicklaus did it five times).
And with this victory, he appears to be a lock to win yet another money title (his seventh in 10 full seasons on Tour) and another Player of the Year award (his eighth).
Oh, and he’s halfway to completing the “Tiger Slam” once again, winning four straight majors, which is something he did from the 2000 U.S. Open to the 2001 Masters Tournament. And, in case you’re wondering, the way he’s playing right now reminds him an awfully lot of the way he was playing back then.
“Yeah,” he said with his Tiger Woods grin. “Pretty close.”
Whether or not you’re a fan, appreciate what Woods is doing. You may not get a chance over the remainder of your life to see anyone else do it better.