Defending champ Tiger ready for the Memorial
Ever since his junior golf days, Tiger Woods has felt comfortable playing on courses designed by Jack Nicklaus, his childhood golf idol. Muirfield Village Golf Club in Dublin, Ohio, is no exception.
Tiger has won the Memorial Tournament five times and is the defending champion this week. He expects another stern but fair test on a course most players consider one of the best on the PGA TOUR.
“Just the way he sets it up,” Woods said Wednesday of host Nicklaus. “There’s ample room off the tees, the greens are really severe, and if you miss the greens, it tests your short game.”
That was the case last year, when Tiger missed the green long-right at the par-3 16th hole on Sunday. With his ball buried in thick rough and water lurking behind the pin, Woods hit a phenomenal 50-foot downhill flop shot that trickled into the cup for a birdie. Nicklaus called it one of the best shots he had ever seen given the difficulty and pressure involved.
Tiger also birdied the par-4 18th hole, where he hit a 9-iron eight feet from the flag. He wound up shooting a 5-under-par 67 and posted a two-stroke victory over Andres Romero and Rory Sabbatini.
After taking a two-week break, Woods comes into this week having won three of his last four starts. The world’s top-ranked golfer recently captured his fourth tournament in seven appearances on the PGA TOUR this year by winning THE PLAYERS Championship.
“It’s been a nice two weeks off,” said Woods, who didn’t exactly sit around, hosting his annual Tiger Jam benefit concert in Las Vegas, which raised more than $800,000 for the college-access programs of the Tiger Woods Foundation, did several commercial shoots and made a site visit to his new golf course design project in Mexico.
“Now it’s time to get back to playing and come to an event that I’ve always loved playing. To have Jack be a part of this event and what he has done for the game of golf and to come here and support him in this event has been fantastic for me and a lot of players.”
On Tuesday, Woods stopped off at Merion Golf Club in Ardmore, Pa., to play a practice round for next month’s U.S. Open. It was his first visit to the club, although conditions weren’t ideal.
“I don’t think it will play quite as long as it did yesterday,” Tiger said. “It was in the low 60s, rained all day and was windy.”
Accompanied by caddie Joe LaCava, who arrived the previous day to chart the course, Woods got a good feel for the course, which last hosted a U.S. Open in 1981.
“It was nice to see and be able to get an understanding of what I need to visualize and my prep next week and get ready for that,” Woods said. “Have a nice understanding of where my sight lines are going to be and where I need to land the ball.”
Former winners at Merion include Ben Hogan, Lee Trevino and David Graham.
“You have to be able to shape the golf ball, and you have to be so disciplined to play that course,” Tiger said.
It also rained at Muirfield Village on Tuesday, but Tiger said you wouldn’t know it. He said the course is in great shape and expects the greens to be quick if the weather holds.
“Jack has it right there where he wants it,” Woods said. “It will be one helluva test.”
Tiger begins first-round play Thursday at 1:16 p.m. ET on the first tee with Fred Couples and Keegan Bradley.
