TIGER Woods finished second last Sunday but to his fans, he was champ.
“He’s physically fine now,” Hall of Famer Ernie Els of Woods said. “He’s swinging well again.”
Els and Woods, both veterans of the World Junior Championships in San Diego, California, whom I had the rare privilege of covering their exploits there almost yearly from the 1980s to the 1990s, have become fierce rivals for 20-plus years now.
But off the course, they are the best of buddies.
“He’s got his energy back even,” said Els, a three-time majors winner—11 short of Woods’s 14.
Woods missed a sudden-death stint after flubbing a birdie on 18, allowing Paul Casey to win the Valspar Championship at Innisbrook Resort’s Copperhead course.
Electing a 2-iron over a 3-wood for his tee shot (“I was avoiding the rough”), Woods would next plant his 7-iron approach from 185 yards well below the hole.
His 40-yard putt was short by 2-1/2 feet.
As my caddie once told me after I had putted short: “Sir, in my 37 years as a caddie, I’ve never seen a short putt fall.”
Earlier, Woods produced the old thrill that he was famously known for when he buried his 45-foot birdie putt on the par-3 17th to give himself a chance.
Still, despite his second-place finish, Woods, 42, was ecstatic.
“I felt very good about what I did,” he said. “I couldn’t ask for more.”
He had just come back from his fourth back surgery and spinal fusion done 11 months ago.
Woods’s 70 for a runner-up finish worth $575,000 behind Casey (65) was his best effort since he tied for 10th in the 2015 Wyndham Championship.
Woods had earlier rounds of 70-68-67 for nine-under, missing the comeback win by a shot. A victory would have given him his 80th PGA Tour triumph—two short of Sam Snead’s all-time 82.
“I was close,” Woods said. “I had a chance. Unfortunately, I just didn’t quite feel as sharp as I needed to with my irons. I played a little conservative because of it.”
But he will play again this week in the Arnold Palmer Invitational for his fifth official tournament since his last back operation in April 2017.
And judging from his last event, I must warn the field.
To begin with, Woods won the Palmer eight times already, the last one in 2013.
After his second-place finish on Monday, the Las Vegas bookmakers got instantly flooded with bets placing Woods the winner in the Master next month.
And this, despite his world ranking of 149th—from 388th before Valspar.
And, speaking of golf winners, hats off to Manila Southwoods for winning its fourth consecutive title in the just-ended 71st PAL Interclub Golf championship in Ramon and May’s beloved Bacolod.
Steering his crew with Swiss-clock precision, captain Thirdy Escano made Southwoods only the third team in PAL Interclub history to win four straight.
Southwoods’s 41-point winning margin over Luisita was also one of the biggest in the fabled national golf team championship, coming as it did during PAL’s prestigious capture just recently of the four-star rating by Skytrax in the international skies under PAL President Jaime J. Bautista.
As a result, Southwoods has the sweet incentive yet of trying to win a fifth straight crown next year, possibly in Cebu, and tie the five straight triumphs accomplished by Canlubang in 2006 to 2010.
Well, if only for the record, Ding Marcelo and Jun Engracia tied for first in the PAL Media Golf serving as a side event. And I finished third, three shots behind. Ahem! I could not complain. One that plays only in tournaments and ends up losing has no right to fret. Only jerks, do.
THAT’S IT If San Miguel Beer completed its three-game semifinal sweep of Barangay Ginebra last night, no surprise there. The Beermen were the heavy favorites in the first place. But if the Gin Kings won, I will also take that anytime. They were winning Game Two last Sunday, until Lady Luck butted in and made SMB the winner on sheer luck.