Tiger woods - His Clutch Shots

2008 U.S. OPEN (ABOVE)
NO. 18Torrey Pines (South Course)La Jolla, Calif.
12-foot birdie putt to force playoff

THE SCENE:

Rocco [Mediate] was up by one and already in the clubhouse, so it was either make this slippery birdie putt and get into a playoff the next day or go home. I never considered the latter.

THE SHOT:

I played the putt about 2½ balls outside right.

The green wasn't very smooth, so I kept telling myself to focus on making a pure stroke.

If it bounces in or out, I thought, so be it -- at least I can hold my head up high. I made a good, solid stroke, and the ball dove into the right side of the cup.

THE LESSON:

When faced with a must-make putt, I always resort to fundamentals, starting with my pre-putt routine.

It helps me stay in rhythm and block out distractions. I'm decisive on the line, and I trust my stroke. By keeping my head and eyes still through impact, I'm assured of making solid contact and starting the ball on my chosen line - essential elements, especially when the pressure is intense.

Number 1 Golf course in America

AUGUSTA NATIONAL G.C. /Despite controversial course changes, the home of the Masters jumped to No. 1 on the list for the first time in our survey's history. A view of the first hole (above).

America's 100 Greatest is the leading symbol of golf-course excellence, the oldest ranking in the game, with the most rigorous requirements and therefore the most respect. It's the exclusive club even exclusive clubs want to join, the one nearly every architect has designs on. The time has come to reveal Golf Digest's latest version. Prepare to greet eight new members and -- oh, yes -- a new No. 1 course.

This can only be termed an upset. Augusta National Golf Club is now the No. 1 course in America, edging the usual titleholder, Pine Valley Golf Club, by the statistical equivalent of a six-inch putt.

It's like Andy Roddick defeating Roger Federer, like Nebraska beating Oklahoma, like Mickelson besting Woods. It can happen, but you don't expect it. This is the first time Augusta National has ever topped Golf Digest's biennial ranking of America's 100 Greatest Golf Courses, and the timing could not have been more surprising. In recent years, Augusta National seemed to be falling out of fashion. The course had been stretched and pressed to fit modern technology at the cost of public opinion. Former Masters champions Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer scolded the club for creating a beast they didn't recognize. Masters fans moaned that the thrill was gone from Sunday afternoons. Architecture buffs scoffed at Augusta's aggressive tree-planting in an age when trees are being toppled at nearly every other championship venue.

On top of all that, last year Golf Digest redefined its Conditioning evaluation category to favor dry, firm, fast turf conditions, a move that would seem to punish the plush, pristine purity that had historically garnered Augusta National near-flawless scores in that category.

Yet Augusta moved from No. 3 in 2007 to No. 1 in 2009. As they say, golf is a game of funny bounces.

Why did it happen? The nature of our course-ranking survey doesn't provide easy explanations. We have more than 900 evaluation panelists. We don't ask them to pick a No. 1 course, a No. 2 course and so on. Instead, we ask them to evaluate all courses and score each on a scale of 1 (Unacceptable) to 10 (Absolutely Perfect) on seven evaluation categories: Shot Values, Design Variety, Resistance to Scoring, Memorability, Aesthetics, Conditioning and Ambience.

Panelists don't even provide a total score for each course. Instead, we average their scores in each category, then total those averages (in the process doubling Shot Values, long considered the most important criterion), and the highest total score wins. In the end, their scores produce more than 504,000 individual elements. Augusta National edged No. 2 Pine Valley by just 36-hundredths of a point.

One panelist who returned to Augusta after a 20-year absence was "extremely impressed" with the work Tom Fazio did in "improving" the golf course, but another "marked it down slightly because of the radical changes throughout the years," and a third set his emotions aside and judged dispassionately, saying, "Although it's not my favorite course in the world and not my favorite style, it is hard to argue with the idea that it's spectacular, with few weaknesses."

Perhaps more enlightening is the fact that a large number of panelists used Augusta National as their standard when evaluating other courses. The risks and rewards of Amen Corner were often cited as benchmarks when judging the Shot Values of another course. Augusta's greens and surrounds were referenced when determining the Resistance to Scoring of other candidates. The Aesthetics and Memorability elsewhere were often compared to Augusta's statuesque pines, blazing azaleas and fluffy dogwoods.

The reason not like Tiger?

The bookies make him an odds-on favorite like no other, mostly because Tiger Woods is unlike any other. He tees off Thursday on mended knee in pursuit of a fifth Masters title, secure once again with his place in the game and looking as dominant as ever.

His will to win is extraordinary. His fellow players defer to his greatness.

And there's nothing in golf better than seeing Woods have a putt on Sunday to win.

But there are those who enjoy watching Zach Johnson put on a green jacket, or maybe even harbor secret thoughts of Greg Norman finally burying his demons. Still others want nothing more than to see Phil Mickelson smiling on the 18th green once again.

Not many, maybe, because it can be lonely pulling against arguably the greatest player ever. Family and friends might not understand.

But there are reasons:
HE'S NOT FAN FRIENDLY — Sure, everyone loves Tiger, but why? He doesn't give autographs, stares straight ahead when walking through crowds, and offers little more than an occasional tip of the hat to acknowledge the throngs following him around the course. Not to mention he curses so loudly after hitting a bad shot that parents have to cover their children's ears.
Woods may need all of that to maintain his supreme focus, but Arnold Palmer did all right with his career and was still more than willing to shake hands and say a few words to any fan who sought him out.

HIS CADDIE IS A PAIN — Stevie Williams makes more than a million dollars a year to carry Woods' bag and hand him his clubs. He also comes in handy driving him to the course, and occasionally will help Woods read a putt. But somewhere along the line his job description broadened to becoming Woods' enforcer on and off the course. His antics include snatching cameras from offending fans and calling Phil Mickelson names, both of which probably earned him a bonus check from his boss.

HE'S TOO PERFECT — Swedish model wife, check. Two cute kids, check. Florida mansion and private jet, check. At a time most of America is struggling, couldn't Woods throw us a bone and show us he shares our pain by blowing a four-shot lead on the back nine Sunday to lose the Masters?

HE SCARES PEOPLE — Well, not regular people, but his fellow players. Woods is revered, no, make that feared, by the people he plays against, which is the main reason why not even Mickelson has stepped up his game enough to give us him a true rival.

HE'S WON ENOUGH — Woods first won the Masters at the age of 21, and has done it three times since. If he wins this week he'll have five green jackets and be within one win of tying Jack Nicklaus for the most Masters titles ever. Nicklaus would love to keep the record, but remember: It was the Golden Bear himself who predicted after seeing Woods in a practice round in 1996 that the young phenom would win more Masters than him and Palmer combined (10).

HE WON"T PLAY THE PAR-3 — The best player in the world was notable again by his absence Wednesday at the annual Par-3 contest, where players show off their games and families while fans get a chance to interact with them. Asked earlier if he would compete and have daughter, Sam, on the bag, Woods wasted no time turning it down. "I am not, and no," he said.

HIS CLOTHES CLASH — Actually, Woods is one of the snazzier dressers on tour, thanks to a contract with Nike that guarantees him the latest in golf fashion. He's also lucky to be dominant in an era where checkered pants and pink tops are a thing of the past — unless you're Ian Poulter. But another win on Sunday means watching Woods parade around in a red shirt and green jacket that would get him tossed from most decent nightclubs.

HE'S TOO SCRIPTED — Everything about Woods seems like it was pulled from some Hollywood movie of old, like the drama of last year's U.S. Open, when he hobbled his way down the 18th hole on Sunday and then made a putt to force a playoff he eventually won. His comeback this year from knee surgery was true to form when he made an 18-footer in near darkness to cap a five-stroke comeback and win his last tournament. Nobody can possibly do those kind of things unless they're drawn up in advance. Unless, of course, the name is Tiger Woods.

YOUTH NEEDS TO BE SERVED — Woods is now 33, a fact that drew a rueful smile from him at his Tuesday press conference. His newest would-be rivals are from another generation, and they grew up idolizing Woods the same way he did Nicklaus. Teenagers Rory McIlroy, Danny Lee and Ryo Ishikawa are in this Masters, and there will come a time that golf needs players like them as much as it needs Woods. Nothing wrong with that time beginning this week on Augusta National.

So, there, Tiger haters. That should be enough to get you through Sunday.

And for the 99 percent of the world that will be rooting for Woods, only one reason is necessary.
Because he is Tiger Woods.

Tiger's International Expansion

Tiger Woods is beefing up his international schedule at the end of the year, saying Wednesday that he will play the HSBC Champions in China the week before he heads to Melbourne for the Australian Masters.

Woods shut down his overseas travel in 2007 after the birth of his first child, and couldn't play last year as he recovered from knee surgery. He announced last week he would play in Australia for the first time since the Presidents Cup in 1998.

The trip Down Under comes with a $3 million appearance fee, half of which comes from taxpayers in the state of Victoria.

Woods defended the appearance money when asked about it at the Arnold Palmer Invitational.

"This is the only place that doesn't have appearance fees," Woods said of the PGA Tour. "Most of the guys get appearance fees to play around the world. I've played all around the world and I've thoroughly enjoyed going.

"Obviously, there's some controversy behind it, but I'm really looking forward to getting down there and competing."

The HSBC Champions is expected to become a World Golf Championship, and when it does, it will be the only WGC event that Woods has not won. But it won't be his first appearance at the tournament in Shanghai.

He was runner-up in 2005 and 2006. Phil Mickelson won the HSBC a year later.