It's like he's driven, since his father's death.
2006, 6:59PM
Singh shoots course record to set up duel with Tiger
By DOUG FERGUSON
Associated Press
NORTON, Mass. ?- All that hard work finally paid off Sunday for Vijay Singh, who shot the best round of his PGA Tour career and put himself in position to end another streak by Tiger Woods at the Deutsche Bank Championship.
Singh played his first five holes in 5 under par, then finished with three straight birdies for a 10-under 61 to set the course record at the TPC of Boston and build a three-shot lead over Woods, who shot 67.
Two years ago, Singh went toe-to-toe with Woods in the final round on Labor Day and beat him by three shots to rise to No. 1, ending Woods' record 264 consecutive weeks atop the world ranking.
Woods now has won four straight times on the PGA Tour, and Singh is poised to end that streak.
"It would be good," Singh said. "I'm not going to be thinking about his streak or beating him. I've been playing long enough to know that you don't go out there and worry about the guys who are playing with you. You worry about your own game and see what happens."
There were no worries Saturday.
Even more impressive than his score were the miserable conditions in which Singh shot his 61.
A light rain at the start of the third round never let up, coating the fairways with a thin layer of moisture, making it difficult to keep clubs dry. With little wind, however, Singh took dead aim at the flags and was never too far off.
"This is one of the worst conditions you want to play golf in because it gets everything wet," Singh said. "I just kept on plodding."
And he kept making birdies, finishing at 11-under 202.
Woods had a chance to get closer, if not catch him over the final two hours after Singh was done. Woods missed four birdie putts inside 15 feet on the back nine, including putts of 10 feet on No. 15 and 8 feet on No. 17.
He looked out of sync over the closing holes, letting his hand fly from the club even on shots that turned out well. There was frustration even when he reached the par-5 18th in two, setting up a two-putt birdie that put him in the final group with Singh.
Justin Rose also birdied the 18th for a 69, leaving him tied with Woods at 205.
J.J. Henry, three weeks away from playing in his first Ryder Cup, shot 68 and was at 207, along with Shaun Micheel (68).
"Hopefully, I can play a little better than last time," Woods said of his duel with Singh. "I just know that tomorrow, given that conditions are as soft as they are, I'm going to have to make some birdies."
Circumstances were far different two years ago.
Singh was at a level few others have reached, winning nine times in 2004 and setting a PGA Tour record by winning nearly $11 million. Perhaps the most significant victory came at Deutsche Bank, where he beat Woods in the final round to become No. 1 in the world.
Now, the roles are reversed again.
Woods has won six times this year, including his last four starts, and is so far ahead in the world ranking that he probably could take a year off and still be No. 1.
For Singh, it has been nothing but frustration.
He missed the cut in the final two majors and has not finished in the top 10 since the Western Open. His only victory this year was at the Barclays Classic, and Singh still isn't sure how that happened.
But he kept pounding away on the range, and finally reaped the reward in a big way.
"I kept telling myself, and everybody that is associated with me said, 'You're playing well. Just go out there and enjoy it, and it's going to happen.' And it was really difficult to keep practicing and not seeing results," Singh said. "And finally it showed up, and I did it in a great way. It didn't feel like it was difficult to do the way I played."
Singh has been around long enough to know that some low scores can be the result of a few more putts going in.
Not this one. This was pure from the start.
He teed off 90 minutes before the leaders and was atop the leaderboard before Woods stuck a tee in the ground. He hit wedge into 5 feet on the opening hole, hammered a 3-wood over the water hazard to 30 feet for eagle on No. 2, then fired at the flags on the fourth and fifth holes for two more birdies.
Two more bursts followed ?- one that gave him the lead, the other that should make him hard to catch on Monday.
Singh was one shot ahead of Woods when he hit 3-iron into 12 feet on the 16th, spun a wedge back to tap-in range on the 17th, then finished his record round with an 18-foot birdie. His previous best on tour was a 62 in the final round at Hartford in 1998.
The 43-year-old Fijian didn't see this one coming.
"Each time I made a birdie, I got even calmer for the next hole," he said. "And I just had a great time out there. I hit a lot of great shots and just tried to play hole-by-hole and never look ahead."
It was difficult not to look ahead to Labor Day and his showdown with Woods.
Woods was still rebuilding his swing with Hank Haney in 2004, about two months away from the pieces falling together. Singh was about to embark on three straight victories, and the hole looked huge.
"It seems so far away, two years ago, the way I was playing then and now," Singh said. "I think this golf course ... it brings back great memories, and hopefully, it's the start of another great run."
Associated Press
NORTON, Mass. -- What began as a rally quickly turned into a rout for Tiger Woods, who matched the lowest final round of his career Monday in the Deutsche Bank Championship to win for the fifth straight time on the PGA Tour. With a splendid array of shots and key putts, Woods crushed the Vijay Singh's spirit on his way to an 8-under 63, turning a three-shot deficit into a two-shot victory for his longest winning streak in a season.
The streak began in July with a victory in the British Open, his first since his father died in May. It continued on a sunny afternoon outside Boston with some of his best golf of the year and allowed him to avenge a loss to Singh at this tournament two years ago.
Woods needed only three holes to erase the deficit, including a 7-iron over a marsh and into 10 feet for eagle at No. 2. He pulled ahead with a 25-foot birdie putt at No. 5, and he seized control with a 3-wood from 266 yards, a piercing shot into a gentle breeze that banged into the slope fronting the green and stopped 10 feet away for another eagle.
He played his first seven holes in 6 under par, and Singh never got closer than two shots the rest of the way.
STRAFFAN, Ireland Tiger Woods was outraged Wednesday at an Irish magazine and a tabloid that linked photos of his wife to various pornography sites, and his agent was studying the merits of a lawsuit.
The publisher, Dubliner Media Limited, issued an apology saying it was a satire and didn't expect anyone to take it seriously.
Woods was among those who did.
"My wife, yes, she has been a model prior, and she did do some bikini photos," Woods said. "But to link her to porn Web sites and such is unacceptable, and I do not accept that at all. Neither does our team."
The Dubliner Magazine wrote in its September issue about Elin Nordegren, his Swedish wife of nearly two years.
"Most American golfers are married to women who cannot keep their clothes on in public," the magazine wrote. "Is it too much to ask that they leave them at home for the Ryder Cup? Consider the evidence. Tiger Woods' wife can be found in a variety of sweaty poses on porn sites."
The Irish Daily Star gave it front-page treatment Wednesday with the headline, "Tiger's Fury at Naked Pictures."
Inside the tabloid, it reprinted photos of Nordegren in a bikini, along with a nude photo of a woman purported to be Nordegren. Woods vehemently denied it was his wife when it first came out three years ago.
"The publisher and staff at The Dubliner acknowledge that the satirical article was inappropriate and wish to sincerely apologize to Tiger Woods, his wife, Elin Nordegren and other Ryder Cup players and their families for any offense they may have taken to it," the statement said.
Mark Steinberg, his agent at IMG, said he was debating whether to pursue a lawsuit.
"It's ridiculous," Steinberg said from IMG headquarters in Cleveland. "I can't say much now because of prejudice, because I'm not sure what we'll do in the future. Everyone knew it (the nude photo) wasn't her. It's plain as day. You can see it's not factual. It's kind of ironic they bring it up this week."
It was the first topic Woods brought up at his news conference leading to the Ryder Cup, which starts Friday at The K Club. He was not scheduled to speak to reporters until Thursday, but asked to move the session to Wednesday.
Woods said his anger has nothing to do with the Irish people or the gallery that came to the golf course, even on Wednesday when the course was closed for three hours in the morning because of 40 mph wind and rain.
"I know the media can be a little bit difficult at times, but when you ... it's hard to be very diplomatic about this when you have so much emotion involved, when my wife is involved in this," Woods said. "As I said, I don't want that to deter from the beauty of this event."
Woods said making public his feelings was a matter of sticking up for his wife.
"You do things for the people you love and you care about," Woods said. "My father got ridiculed for years, and I always felt for my father and my mother the same way. My wife, we're in it together. We're a team, and we do things as a team. And I care about her with all my heart."
The Americans got stuffed in the Ryder cup. And Woods (and Mickelson) was not at the races.
Whats going on with these over paid over hyped billionaire golfers
They can do it for themselves when there's a million bucks in a put but they cant do it for their country. I would be furious at Woods if I was American.
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Did anyone watch any of the Ryder Cup? It was a real spectacle and for Darren Clarke to play so well 6 weeks after the death of his wife from breast cancer was so moving. Thoroughly deserved win by the Europeans
Why be furious at Woods? No one can be perfect all the time. He will snap back. He's perhaps the most humble billionaire golfer there ever was,
To be fair, Woods was the top-scoring American with three points out of five. Played very well on Saturday and Sunday.
PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Florida (Ticker) - In a result that has become about as certain as the sun coming up each morning, Tiger Woods has been named the PGA Tour Player of the Year.
Tuesday's announcement marks the eighth time that Woods has won the Jack Nicklaus Trophy, the award given to the player of the year as selected by PGA Tour players.
In a year that was marked by the death of his father, Earl, Woods went on to win two majors among his eight tour victories. With over $9.9 million in earnings Woods won the money title as well.
Tiger (yawn) does it again. This time, he duct taped his ankles together and also his elbows, as the game began. He closed his eyes most of the time, to be fair to the other golfers, but opened them each time the crowd yelled out that he had scored another hole in one. He finished the course, then took a nap under a tree, waiting on the others to give up. When the last one finally cried "Uncle!" he accepted the trophy and a huge check and grinned modestly. "Shucks," he said. "I just smack the balls around a bit. Luck and nature handles the rest."
Tiger Woods - Amazing
I just can't get enough of this shot. I must've watched it 150 times since I saw it live.
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-740084892738160457&hl=en
It's incredible.
Tiger is my favorite sports figure, ever.
I agree Edgar. Tiger has remained unswayed by the glamor and clebrity. He has devoted his energies and abilities to helping those less fortunate. He is to be praised!
