Newsday (N.Y.): Tiger's hitting it great, but putting it bad

in ,
By Art Spander
Special to Newsday

ST. ANDREWS, Scotland -- Now it's the putting. Now it's the best part of his game that is baffling Tiger Woods.

"I striped it all day,'' Woods said of his tee balls and iron shots, "but I wasn't making anything.''

He's far back after three rounds of a British Open which, because it was played on the Old Course where he won in 2000 and 2005, might have proven to be restorative, but has not.

He's 12 behind with 18 holes to go, and although Paul Lawrie, in that 1999 Open at Carnoustie infamous for Jean Van de Velde's final-hole disaster, came from 10 behind to win, Tiger has no chance of making up 12 shots.

And so he will go a third straight major this year and seven straight over the last two years without a first place, the last victory coming in the 2008 U.S. Open at Torrey Pines.

The problems, said Tiger - he had back-to-back 3-putts at 13 and 14 and then 3-putted the 357-yard 18th for a par after driving the green - are not the result of the new putter, the club from Nike which replaced the Scotty Cameron by Titleist. Instead, they are the result of the "puttee,'' the person making the strokes.

Woods came in with his second straight 1-over-par 73, and is at 3-under 213 for 54 holes, tied for 18th with several others including 2009 U.S. Open champion Lucas Glover.

"I've just got to get off to a good start,'' said Woods. "[Saturday] I had a makable putt at one, a horseshoe on two [a 50-footer which rimmed] and a makable putt at three. Those go in and it's a different ballgame.''

Golfers are always talking about what might have been. For Woods - winner of 14 majors - the words were unusual until this year, when after returning from rehab for his marital infidelities, Tiger has been unable to return to previous success.

"Ironically enough,'' he said with a bit of a smile, "now I'm driving it beautifully. You have to be patient. I was as patient as I could be, plodding along. I just didn't get anything going.''

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Newsday (N.Y.): Oosthuizen cruises as Americans fail to fire

in ,
By Art Spander
Special to Newsday

ST. ANDREWS, Scotland -- For America, it's red, white and very blue. The British Open appears closed to anyone on the other side of the Atlantic.

The guy in front is from South Africa, the guy in second from England, the guy in third from Germany and the players tied for fifth are from Sweden, Spain and England.

"It looks like the European Ryder Cup team,'' someone apprised Tiger Woods, despite the fact that South Africa is not part of Europe.

Said Woods: "I haven't even looked. We all know them as just players.''

A Northern Irishman, Graeme McDowell, took the U.S. Open a month ago at Pebble Beach. At St. Andrews, where Woods won the previous two Opens and John Daly won the Open in 1995, there's no hope for America.

Louis Oosthuizen, the South African, stormed along Saturday. The 27-year-old Oosthuizen, who in three previous Opens never made a cut, shot his third straight sub-70 round, an elegant 3-under-par 69.

With 18 holes to play, he's at 15-under 201 and four ahead of Englishman Paul Casey, who, if it gives anyone in the United States consolation, did attend Arizona State and lives most of the year in Scottsdale. He had a 5-under 67 for 205.

Martin Kaymer of Germany, who also resides in Arizona, shot 68 for 208, and Henrik Stenson of Sweden (67), Alejandro Canizares of Spain (71) and Lee Westwood of England (71) share fourth.

Finally come golfers with U.S. passports. Dustin Johnson, who led the Pebble Beach Open after 54 holes, is seventh at 210 after a 69. Nick Watney (71), Sean O'Hair (72) and Ricky Barnes (72) - nearly the man at Bethpage Black last year - are tied for eighth with South Africa's Retief Goosen. Woods is tied for 18th.

And if there are no Americans truly contending, there are 15 among the top 38 scores. Good depth. No stars.

Johnson said he's in a spot -- nine back -- where he has "a chance,'' but that's probably being overly optimistic. It isn't only the differential, it's the number of people he would have to pass.

"That's why I practice,'' Johnson, who lives in South Carolina, said of making a charge. "That's why I'm here.''

Maybe what happened to Johnson in the U.S. Open, a triple-bogey on the second hole the final round, a double on the third, happens to Oosthuizen, who like Johnson at Pebble Beach never has been in the pressure of trying to win a major.

But Saturday, after a bogey on the first hole, Oosthuizen (it's prounounced "West-high-sen'') didn't make another. "I was quite nervous on the first,'' he said, "but then I got myself together.''

That's something the golfers first and second in the world rankings, a couple of Americans named Woods and Phil Mickelson, have been unable to do all week. Tiger shot a second straight 1-over 73 for 213 - 12 shots behind - Mickelson a 70 for 214.

When it was mentioned to Tiger that he would have to climb a large hill to get past Oosthuizen, he said: "It certainly is, but you don't know what the weather is going to do . . . Hopefully, I can get some momentum going early. I'm playing well.''

The scoreboard would indicate no one is playing as well through three rounds as Oosthuizen. "Yeah,'' he said, "I'm swinging it nicely. Probably when they saw my first putt, people expected I could lose it, but I kept positive and made two good par saves the first six holes.

"I'm really happy with myself, keeping my emotions intact.''

And keeping the Americans at a distance.

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Newsday (N.Y.): U.S. Open winner McDowell contends at St. Andrews

in ,
By Art Spander
Special to Newsday

ST. ANDREWS, Scotland -- He's the U.S. Open champion, and that's been a disadvantage to Graeme McDowell. "People keep congratulating me on Pebble Beach,'' he said, "and it's difficult for me to move on. I've got to get refocused.''

McDowell seemed to do that Friday. He shot a 4-under-par 68 in the wind-whipped second round of the British Open and moved into a tie for sixth at 139, seven shots behind Louis Oosthuizen's 132.

On Thursday, it was McDowell's pal and countryman, young Rory McIlroy, who was the star of St. Andrews with a 63, eight better than McDowell. But on Friday, McIlroy ended up four shots back of McDowell.

"I was careless a bit on my putting,'' said McDowell, 28. "Two more careless three-putts. Four in two days, which is a little unlike me. But I felt a lot better today.''

Tiger Woods, who did it in 2000, is the last to win the U.S. and British Opens the same year. McDowell wouldn't appear to have a chance, but golf can be strange.

"For sure,'' McDowell said, "I'm going into this weekend with no expectations at all. I'm putting no pressure on myself. I've got myself in great position. I'll be out [Saturday] free swinging and just really trying to control the ball in this weather. I love being in contention. It's weird saying I'm in contention being seven back, but there's not too many guys ahead of me.''

McDowell figures some of those guys will fall victim to the ill winds that have been predicted.

"When the wind gets up on this course, it's a different kind of fish," McDowell said. "There's plenty of deep coffin-like bunkers to bury the wreckage out there.''

McDowell became the first European in 40 years to win the U.S. Open. He showed tenacity and fine touch on the greens, both of which are needed in this tournament more than ever.

"This golf course asks you to hit all the shots,'' McDowell said, and after winning a major, it's apparent that he has them all.

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Newsday (N.Y.): Oosthuizen brilliant again as Rory fades, Tiger hangs on

in ,
By Art Spander
Special to Newsday

ST. ANDREWS, Scotland -- This was the British Open so many expected, a tournament at the mercy of nature with wind so strong that play had to be suspended for more than an hour.

This was the British Open no one expected, a young South African dominating after two incredible rounds.

What a Friday along the North Sea, when calm became calamitous, when Rory McIlroy was 17 shots worse than he had been Thursday; when Tiger Woods tumbled down, if not quite out; and when Louis Oosthuizen beat both the weather and everyone else in the field for the first two rounds of this 139th Open.

When in early afternoon the wind gusted up to 41 mph, the Royal and Ancient Golf Club, which runs the Open, said balls were being moved on the greens and it "had no option but to suspend play.''

Which it did for 65 minutes, turning golf into a long day's journey into night, which in Scotland in July doesn't arrive with total darkness until past 10:30 p.m. Late starters were out there for more than seven hours, and not everyone finished.

Oosthuizen went out at 6:41 a.m. So although he endured some rain and a lighter wind, he was long finished when the nasty gusts moved in, posting a 5-under-par 67. He had a 36-hole score of 12-under 132 and a five-shot lead over Mark Calcavecchia.

"I like playing in the wind,'' said Oosthuizen, 27, whose given names, after his grandfather, are Lodewicus Theodorus. He won't answer to either, however, always being known as Louis - or to his friends as "Shrek.''

In second place at 70-67-137 is Calcavecchia, 50, the Open winner in 1989. He was in the first threesome at 6:30 a.m., and if, like Oosthuizen, that meant arising at about 4 a.m., it also meant getting around the Old Course before being figuratively blown away.

That's what happened to McIlroy, who tied the course record of 63 Thursday and didn't make a bogey. On Friday, he shot 40-40-80, not making a birdie, and dropped from first to a tie for 38th.

"It could have been 82 or 82,'' McIlroy said. "I've never experienced shooting 63 and then going and shooting 80.''

Tiger Woods, with a birdie at 18, shot 73 for 140. The final putt dropped a bit before 10 p.m. After Tom Watson birdied 18 to finish at 75 for 148, the horn was blown to halt play, leaving 30 golfers to return Saturday.

"It was a tough day. For everybody,'' Woods said. "You just have to go out there and deal with it, whether you're on the good end of the draw or not the good end . . . I'm not exactly where I want to be, but after my start [he began bogey, bogey], I could have shot myself out of it.''

The projected cut was 145, and names such as Watson, Ernie Els, Padraig Harrington and Geoff Ogilvy were among those above that score.

Oosthuizen won the Par-3 Contest at the Masters this year - then missed the cut in the regular event for a third straight time - but he won the Andalucia Open on the European Tour and said that changed his outlook, building his confidence.

The son of a farmer, Oosthuizen said he would not have been able to afford golf lessons as a child were it not for the foundation created by countryman Els to help young South Africans.

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RealClearSports: Old Course Is Old Friend to Tiger, Big John

in ,
By Art Spander
For RealClearSports.com

ST. ANDREWS, Scotland -- This is an easy area to find enchantment, to be captured by the mystery of a town as well as the history of golf.

The ruins of a 900-year-old cathedral prove an iconic sentinel at one end of a place constructed as much on great golf as of gray stone. A few cobblestone streets away rests the Old Course, no less a benchmark than a landmark.

Read the full story here.

© RealClearSports 2010

Newsday (N.Y.): Daly shoots 66 on his favorite course

in ,
By Art Spander
Special to Newsday

ST. ANDREWS, Scotland -- They are trousers here, not "pants." The ones John Daly wears these days, he calls them Paseltines, look they've been designed using a kaleidoscope. "I can get dressed in the dark," he said. "Any shirt is going to match."

Daly  -- 44, slimmed by Lap-Band surgery and seemingly reformed -- is trying to equal the golf he once played when, before the binges and the suspensions, he won the 1991 PGA Championship and the 1995 British Open.

The '95 Open was at St. Andrews, where Thursday Daly briefly held the lead in the first round with a 6-under par 66 that still proved good enough for a tie for third.

"I love this course," Daly said. "I fell in love in '94 in the Dunhill Cup. I don't know why. It just suits my game . . . It's a golf course that not only brings back memories but was a memory even before I played it because of the great players that have won here. It's my favorite course in the world."

The end of January, having missed the cut in the Farmers Insurance Open at San Diego, Daly announced he was quitting golf. He explained he was frustrated because "I wanted results quicker," after three years of pain from a rib injury.

The results Thursday were encouraging.

"I've learned a lot," he said of his alcoholism and divorces. "I have never run from my mistakes. I've always been honest with you guys [the media] and everybody around me. I'm on a comeback. I've been hurt. It makes it very tough to get your confidence up when you're working around injuries."

Daly said he hasn't had a drink since the band was surgically implanted in April 2009 and has lost more than 100 pounds. "I'm not dieting," he pointed out. "I just can only put a little bit of the bad stuff in my belly."

A British writer said, "You're no longer the Wild Thing. What can we call you now, please?"
Daly thought for a moment.

"I don't know," he answered. "The Mild Thing?"

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Newsday (N.Y.): McIlroy leads, Woods in hunt at windless British Open

in ,
By Art Spander
Special to Newsday

ST. ANDREWS, Scotland -- For a day, Mother Nature, that most fickle of ladies, was as gentle as the heather on the hills. After all, this is Scotland, where the witches in Shakespeare's "Macbeth" conspired in weather as nasty as their reputation, and the forecast for the first round of the 139th British Open was for wind and rain.

Instead, after a light morning drizzle Thursday, golfers shed their waterproofs, their sweaters and their inhibitions. Until early evening, the Old Course at St. Andrews was a charm, and the opening scores were virtually ridiculous.

"It will never get any easier," said Rory McIlroy.

McIlroy shot a 9-under par 63, equaling the lowest Open round ever shot on the game's most historic course, where the tournament is being played for a 28th time. And the "old" Tiger Woods even shot a 5-under 67.

In between were a 65 by Louis Oosthuizen, a South African whose name appears here and there, and 66s by John Daly, Andrew Coltart, Steven Tiley and Bradley Dredge. Among those at 67 was Lucas Glover, who won the 2009 U.S. Open at Bethpage Black, and Lee Westwood, in search of his first major. Phil Mickelson shot a 73.

Linksland courses are defenseless without a brisk wind. For most of the long day - it doesn't get dark here until around 10:30 p.m. - there barely was a breeze. That meant there were a ton of birdies and in the case of the 21-year-old McIlroy, an eagle 2 when he drove the 352-yard par 4 ninth hole.

"You needed to take advantage of conditions," said McIlroy, who like Graeme McDowell, winner of last month's U.S. Open at Pebble Beach, is from Northern Ireland. "It never is going to get any easier."

McIlroy equaled the lowest score ever in a major championship. His 33-30-63 (the eagle, seven birdies and no bogeys) was the 24th time the score was recorded in a major.

"Yeah," said McIlroy "it was a fantastic score."

He said McDowell's U.S. Open victory gave him a belief he could win a major, and then alluding to Padraig Harrington, from the Republic of Ireland, and McDowell, McIlroy quipped, "I wouldn't like to be the only Irishman at the Ryder Cup without a major."

McIlroy's hometown is Holywood, pronounced "Hollywood," But it's too early to be thinking of a cinematic story. "There are 54 holes to go," reminded Tiger.

Woods was pleased with his 67, if not satisfied, dropping a shot at the famed 17th, the Road Hole, and then failing to birdie the 357-yard 18th despite nearly reaching the green with his drive.

"It felt awkward, because there was absolutely no wind whatsoever," said Woods, "and you never play a links golf course with no wind. You knew with the conditions we had, you had to go get it."

Woods won the last two Opens at St. Andrews, in 2000 and 2005, and despite the struggles of his now-familiar marital infidelity and the departure of his swing coach, he looked like a golfer who could justify favoritism by the British bookies.

"It's getting better every week," said Woods of his game. "I'm hitting shots I haven't hit in a long time. It's building.

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Newsday (N.Y.): Watson hopes to challenge again after near-miss in '09

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By Art Spander
Special to Newsday

ST. ANDREWS, Scotland -- For Tom Watson, the Open Championship inevitably evolves into the past, even if he doesn't want it to.

Either someone is asking about what might have been a year ago or that missed opportunity here on the hallowed golfing ground of the Old Course 26 years ago.

Strange how it is in sports. No matter how many championships you earn, and Watson has five Opens, only one fewer than the century-old record of Harry Vardon, the questions are always about the championships lost.

Such as the 2009 Open, when Watson, age 59, led for 71 holes at Turnberry before a bogey on 18 led to a tie and playoff loss to Stewart Cink.

Such as the 1984 Open here when Watson came to the 17th, the Road Hole, "the hardest hole in golf," tied with Seve Ballesteros and hit a 2-iron onto the road near a stone wall. The bogey dropped him to second.

It was a nostalgic but forward-looking Watson who showed up in the media tent Wednesday, 24 hours before the start of the 139th Open.

"St. Andrews is a hard course to understand," said Watson, when asked his chances. "You have to re-learn it every day."

This will be his seventh and most likely his last Open at St. Andrews, a course on which Jack Nicklaus said "all great Open champions must win," but a course where Watson has only one top-10 finish, that runnerup.

The disappointment of a year past, when Watson was a stroke from becoming the sports story of the year, has not lingered.

"It tore my guts out," said Watson of the final-hole failure at Turnberry, "but I've had my guts torn up before in this game. But it hasn't made any impact.

"People of our age come up to me and say they couldn't stop watching. They say. 'I'm 60 years old, and I've given up on the game or given up on something else, and you've given me hope.'"
The hope for Watson is in 2010 after an 18th place in the Masters and a 29th in the U.S. Open at Pebble Beach, "It would be a great triumvirate if I did well here at age 60."

Ballesteros is not doing well. He is home in Spain, after undergoing multiple surgeries for a brain tumor. At the Champions dinner, held only when the Open is at St. Andrews, Ballesteros sent a brief video.

"He said I wish I had energy to be there," Watson said. "It was sad to see him. But seeing him I remembered the cheer that went up before I tried to make my par putt at 17 [in '84]. I looked at 18, and there he was [indicating an arm pump.] I said. 'Uh, oh, I have to make it now.' But I didn't."

Watson and several others, including Arnold Palmer, received honorary doctorates from the University of St. Andrews.

"I told Arnold, 'You've always been my idol,'" Watson said. "When I grew up I was a member of Arnie's Army. Then Jack came along and beat Arnie, and I couldn't stand it. I told Arnie, 'The only reason I beat Nicklaus all those times is because he beat you.' He got a laugh out of that."

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Newsday (N.Y.): Tiger reveals new putter, little else, at British Open

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By Art Spander
Special to Newsday

ST. ANDREWS, Scotland -- They pick at him, but it's hopeless. Tiger Woods' shell is much too hard, his advisers much too heady. There is a change in putters, for the first time in 11 years, but the determination to keep us out of his life remains unchanged.

It's the week of the Open Championship, the 139th, this year at the home of golf, the Old Course at St. Andrews. It's the week Woods returns with his triumphs (winning here in 2000 and 2005) and his troubles.

It's the week the British press gets its chance to dig and confront and ask about infidelity and irresponsibility.

It's the week Tiger gets his chance to prove not only can he lag a putt but he can avoid an accusation.

There were some 20 minutes of Tiger Tuesday, two days before the Open's first round on the Old Course at St. Andrews, and it was educational, if not at all enlightening.

Tiger did say for the first time since 1999 -- and 13 of his 14 majors -- he'll swap his Scotty Cameron by Titleist putter for a Nike model he believes will be more effective on greens slow by championship standards.

And, oh yes, the most important thing in his life is family. The children, that is. Any mention of estranged wife Elin was virtually ignored by Woods.

There's little new to ask Woods, now some nine months after the accident which opened Tiger's life. Divorce? Image? Public support? Tom Watson's (now figuratively ancient) remark Woods needed to clean up his act?

That was essence of the questions, although there was one query about the remaking (and some pros say, the ruination) of the famed Road Hole, the 17th.

"I know they wanted us to hit more club into that particular green,'' said Woods, a response which typified his well-practiced art of saying nothing when he says something.

"I'm pretty neutral on it.''

To the question about Watson's admonishment, Tiger offered more contrition than neutrality. "I'm trying to become a better player,'' he said, "and yes, a better person.''

And to whether he'll ever be able to resurrect his image, Woods added, "I don't know. I don't know. As I said, that's all that really matters. I have two beautiful children, and I'm trying to be the best dad I can possibly be, and that's the most important thing of all.''

The English pro Ian Poulter told The Times of London that Tiger carries in his cell phone a video of his 17-month-old son, Charlie, swinging a cut-down golf club. "You wouldn't believe it,'' said Poulter. "When he's 15, he'll probably have won Augusta by 25 shots.''

The shots the British press fired missed the mark. Asked if the divorce between him and Elin had been finalized -- the papers here say she will receive $100 million -- Woods said, "I'm not going to go into that.''

He did go into the misconceived idea his image would have an impact on his week at St. Andrews.

"It doesn't impact it all,'' he said. "I'm here to play the Open Championship at St. Andrews. I mean this is as good as it gets.''

British journalists, seeking the lurid and juicy, hardly would agree.

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RealClearSports: Golf Needs Tiger and Tiger Needs Golf

in ,
By Art Spander
For RealClearSports.com

ST. ANDREWS, Scotland -- Peter Dawson, the man from the Royal & Ancient, the organization which rules golf outside the United States, the organization which runs the Open Championship, cut through the posturing and self-righteousness.

Golf, said the R&A's chief executive, isn't golf without Tiger Woods. And whatever we think about Woods' moral standards, about his impending divorce, about his infidelity, the observation is undeniable.

Read the full story here.

© RealClearSports 2010

SF Examiner: Tiger not letting media mauling ruin his focus

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By Art Spander
Special to The Examiner

ST. ANDREWS, SCOTLAND — He went to Stanford, didn’t he? The Brits should have figured out by now what that means. That even in his most difficult of times, Tiger Woods still is going to battle them, word for word, phrase for phrase, thought for thought.

Read the full story here.

Copyright 2010 SF Newspaper Company

Global Golf Post: Almost A Special Win For The 'Nearly Man'

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By Art Spander
For GlobalGolfPost.com

The missed putt. That's what everyone remembers. That's what Doug Sanders can't forget.

There went the 28-incher sliding past the cup. There went the 1970 Open Championship. There went the late Pat-Ward Thomas, the esteemed and critical British golf writer, to his knees, peering across the 18th green at St. Andrews and later saying, "A subtle break he didn't see."

Read the full story here.

Copyright 2010 Global Golf Post

RealClearSports: Is Era of Soccer Finally Upon America?

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By Art Spander
For RealClearSports.com

LONDON -- Is this the end or the beginning? Does soccer, football to the rest of the world, finally capture the United States? Or was this World Cup fascination only a brief affair, a fling encouraged by ESPN, and little more?

Does it become only a sweet memory in anticipation of Drew Brees and Peyton Manning coming to training camp? Or when you think of fullbacks will it mean players who kick a round ball as much as those who occasionally carry an oval one?

Read the full story here.

© RealClearSports 2010

RealClearSports: In Britain, No Sympathy for Tiger

in ,
By Art Spander
For RealClearSports.com

LONDON -- This nonsense about where LeBron James signs, in truth, is simply harmless fun. Except to James. And the team that signs him. And the teams that want to sign him -- can anyone say New York? -- and don't.

Over here, they may not know a bounce pass from a bouncer in a pub, but they, meaning the media, meaning we, do know how to go for the jugular.

Read the full story here.

© RealClearSports 2010

CBSSports.com: Nadal a level above the rest as Spain's memorable run continues

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By Art Spander
The Sports Xchange/CBSSports.com

WIMBLEDON, England -- The reign of Spain stays mainly wherever Rafael Nadal swings a racquet, whether the clay of Roland Garros or the grass of Wimbledon.

Oh, that wrap-around top-spin forehand. Oh, that gleeful fist pump. Oh, that unusual somersault at Centre Court.

Read the full story here.

© 2010 CBS Interactive. All rights reserved.

CBSSports: Sensational Serena brings Williamses' Wimbledon dominance to new level

in ,
By Art Spander
The Sports Xchange/CBSSports.com

WIMBLEDON, England -- Maybe they should rename the tournament "Williams-don."

Those sisters have a forehand grip on women's singles and that beautiful plate, the "Venus Rosewater Dish," given to the champion.

Read the full story here.

© 2010 CBS Interactive. All rights reserved.

CBSSports.com: Brits' dubious streak intact as Murray fails to deliver

in ,
By Art Spander
The Sports Xchange/CBSSports.com

WIMBLEDON, England -- And so the streak remains unbroken. Unlike Andy Murray's serve.

Not much changes around here. People still say braces when they mean suspenders. Beer is served cool instead of cold. And a Brit is unable to win Wimbledon.

Read the full story here.

© 2010 CBS Interactive. All rights reserved.

CBSSports.com: Serena avoids pitfalls that tripped up others to reach finals

in
By Art Spander
The Sports Xchange/CBSSports.com

WIMBLEDON, England -- Something still makes sense at this Wimbledon. Or should that be someone still makes sense? The woman No. 1 in the seeding, No. 1 in the WTA rankings, is into the finals.

A small American cheer is allowed for both Ms. Serena Williams and realized expectations.

Read the full story here.

© 2010 CBS Interactive. All rights reserved.

RealClearSports: Roger Federer: In Decline and In Denial

in ,
By Art Spander
For RealClearSports.com

WIMBLEDON, England -- In team sports someone else makes the decision. You're traded or waived or, in that left-to-twist-in-the-wind category unique to baseball, designated for assignment.

In tennis, however, it's all about ego. And doubt.

Read the full story here.

© RealClearSports 2010