PGA Tour notebook: Tiger says fans, media can't understand difficulty of a winning streak

From WorldGolf.com News Services

How difficult is it to put together a winning streak like the one Tiger Woods just had snapped Monday in the WGC-CA Championship? Apparently, the Average Joe has no idea.

Woods had his string of five consecutive PGA Tour wins and seven straight victories worldwide halted as Geoff Ogilvy shot 17 under par and recorded a one-stroke victory over Jim Furyk, Vijay Singh and Retief Goosen. Woods rallied with three birdies in his final seven holes, but finished in fifth place, two shots off the pace at Doral Resort & Spa's Blue Monster Course.

"I think the people that truly understand are the players," Woods told reporters. "I don't think you guys really understand or even the fans out there, just how small the difference is. If I just clean up my round this week, then obviously I'm right there with Geoff, if not just a little bit ahead of the 17 he's at right now."

Woods pointed out that good luck plays a factor in any winning streak. No doubt, the world No. 1-ranked player had his share, pouring in putts from everywhere to avert a loss and eventually win the Accenture Match Play Championship and sinking a 25-footer to take the Arnold Palmer Invitational.

Luck was evidently on Ogilvy's side Monday morning as he was able to make nine consecutive pars and still hold on against a leaderboard full of the world's top players. His biggest break was a chip-in on No. 13 to save par on a shot that would've probably ended up 15 feet on the other side of the cup if it hadn't hit the pin.

"People don't really understand you need to have something happen, a positive thing happen to you out there in order to win tournaments," Woods said. "I heard Geoff bladed one in the hole for par. That's what you need to have happen. Those are the things that have happened to me and things weren't going that way this week."

Looking back on his first loss since a second-place finish in the Deutsche Bank Championship in early September, Woods put a positive spin on things. He said he felt good about his finish — his career-best ninth consecutive top-five performance on the PGA Tour - despite some shaky play and bad breaks.

"I think it's a great sign," Woods said.

Goosen back on track

Retief Goosen's tie for second place at the WGC-CA Championship ended a long streak of frustration as the South African recorded his first top-10 finish since the 2007 Masters. Last year at Augusta National, Goosen tied for second with Tiger Woods and Rory Sabbatini, two strokes behind Zach Johnson.

"It's consistency and putting, definitely," Goosen told reporters. "I changed my putting a little bit about three weeks ago, and then last week at Bay Hill Club & Lodge actually started to putt a little bit better.

"If you can make putts, you can score, and that's what I did this week. I made a few good putts, but just came up one short, really."

Toms withdraws from Zurich Classic

Citing a back injury, Tuesday David Toms withdrew from the Zurich Classic of New Orleans, according to the PGA Tour. Toms, who won the event in 2001, said he was disappointed to have to miss the tournament for the first time in 13 years. A native of Shreveport, La., Toms has played in 16 Zurich Classics overall.

"This tournament means so much to me and I hate that I will not be able to compete this year," Toms told reporters. "I'm fighting a lower back injury that only gets slightly better each day. It wouldn't be fair to the great golf fans in New Orleans if I tried to tee it up and I wasn't 100 percent healthy."

Toms said he feels confident that he'll be ready to play in the Masters.

Noteworthy

• With his victory Monday in the WGC-CA Championship, Geoff Ogilvy became the third player to win more than one World Golf Championships title, joining Tiger Woods and Darren Clarke.

• Ogilvy also made a major climb in the FedExCup standings, advancing from 79th to 10th. Puerto Rico Open winner Greg Kraft advanced from 162nd place up to 37th.

• When Kraft won in Puerto Rico at the age of 43 years, 11 months and 19 days, he became the oldest first-time winner on the PGA Tour since Ed Dougherty won the 1995 Viking Classic at the age of 47 years, 8 months and 19 days.

• J.B. Holmes carded a 4-under-par 68 Tuesday to take individual honors and lead Isleworth to a victory over Lake Nona in the Tavistock Cup in the annual battle between the two exclusive central Florida clubs. Tiger Woods of Isleworth had won individual honors each of the past three years.

March 26, 2008