Tiger Woods fired one of the greatest rounds of his career, a seven-under par 63 that missed by an eyelash being the lowest round in Major history, to grab the lead on Friday at the PGA Championship.
Woods lipped out a horseshoe heart-breaker on a 15-foot birdie putt at the 18th hole to miss setting a record-low Major round, instead becoming the 21st man to shoot 63 in a Major and settling for a two-stroke lead after 36 holes.
”I thought I made it,” Woods said. ”It would have been nice to have the record and have a three-shot lead. The good thing is, I hit a good putt.”
The 18th hole at Southern Hills Country Club, rebuilt since infamously inflicting multi-putt mayhem on last-round leaders at the 2001 US Open, had surrendered only eight birdies in two days.
Woods, whose round was his lowest 18-hole score in a Major, was denied his ninth birdie of the day and another epic milestone in his fabled career, but only after an agonising tease.
”I thought it had gone in. I put the right touch on it but it didn’t go,” Woods said.
”I hit it a little firm. I know it broke a lot more at the end than at the beginning and it was diving. It just didn’t want to go in.”
Defending champion Woods dropped his putter and turned around after watching the tension-packed putt roll left-to-right around the far rim of the cup and back at him, leaving him a tap-in to finish.
”I felt all day I was in control of my shots,” Woods said. ”The hard part was trying to make some of the putts because the greens were not smooth.”
Woods’s previous low in a Major had been the 64 he fired in the third round of the 1997 British Open at Royal Troon. His career low in any PGA event is a 61, achieved three times, most recently at the 2005 Buick Open.
”You just have to keep plugging along, one shot at a time,” Woods said. ”It was not easy out there.”
After a first-round 71 on Thursday, Woods finished 36 holes on six-under par 134 to grab a two-stroke lead over fellow American Scott Verplank with Canada’s Stephen Ames and Australian Geoff Ogilvy on 137.
Woods, a 12-time Major champion chasing Jack Nicklaus’s career record of 18 Major victories, took a valuable step toward making this event his 13th Major victory. Winners of all six prior Majors at Southern Hills led after 36 holes.
In addition, Woods is 7-0 in Majors after leading through 36 holes and also perfect in Majors when ahead after 54 holes.
”Certainly does give you confidence,” Woods said. ”I know what to do. It’s just a matter of going out there and doing it.”
World number one Woods matched the Southern Hills course record of 63 set by Raymond Floyd in the first round of the 1982 PGA Championship. Woods’s round was the 23rd 63 in Majors history. Vijay Singh and Greg Norman have shot 63 twice.
Woods began with a birdie, added another with a 20-foot putt at the fourth and recovered from putting his tee shot into a bunker at the par-5 fifth by dropping his approach eight feet from the cup and sinking it for a birdie.
After sinking back-to-back birdies at nine and 10, Woods followed with a pair of pars, salvaging one at the par-3 12th on a 35-foot putt after finding a bunker.
”The putt on 12 was huge,” Woods said.
Woods then birdied three holes in a row starting at the par-5 13th. Woods chipped in for a birdie on the par-3 14th to grab the lead, then sank a 20-foot birdie putt at the 15th to seize the lead.
Knowing he was on the verge of history, Woods had three holes to find one more birdie but failed.
Woods curved a birdie putt one foot beyond the cup at 16 and left his birdie bid short at 17, setting up the final drama at 18.
After beginning the day sharing 23rd place six strokes out of the lead, Woods ended the day two strokes clear of the field.
His Saturday playing partner, Verplank, ended a six-year win drought with an April victory at the Byron Nelson Championship.
But winning his first Major on home turf after going 0-for-52 in Majors is almost more than Verplank (43) can imagine.
”It would be more than a dream come true, particularly so close to where I live. It would be unbelievable,” he said.
Ogilvy, the 2006 US Open champion, briefly matched Woods for the lead at 5-under but finished with back-to-back bogeys to fall into a share of third with Ames, who also took a bogey at 18 to fall behind Verplank.
Only eight players reached the midpoint under par. US veteran Woody Austin was fifth on 138 with Aussie John Senden, American Pat Perez and Swede Niclas Fasth on 139.
John Daly, who fired a 67 Thursday, struggled to a 73 Friday to share ninth on level par 140.
England’s Graeme Storm, the first-round leader with a 65, fired a 76 to share 15th on 141, one stroke better than British Open champion Padraig Harrington of Ireland.
Ernie Els was six off the pace on 140, with Retief Goosen a shot further back.
Spain’s Sergio Garcia made the cut on the number at 145, among 72 playing the weekend. — AFP
