Woods wins World Match Play title
Not even the most unpredictable tournament in golf could keep Tiger Woods from an inevitable victory.
There seems to be no stopping him.
Stewart Cink barely put up a fight Sunday in the Accenture Match Play Championship, where Woods broke a scoring record for the fourth straight tournament, collected his fifth straight victory worldwide and didn’t so much as crack a smile when someone asked him if a perfect season was within reach.
“That’s my intent,” he said. “That’s why you play. It you don’t believe you can win an event, don’t show up.”
Relentless as ever, Woods made 14 birdies in 29 holes in the high desert of Dove Mountain in Marana, Ariz., to overwhelm Stewart Cink for an 8-and-7 victory, the largest margin in the final match in the 10-year history of the event.
Woods captured his 15th World Golf Championship, holding all three world titles for the first time.
And his 63rd career victory moved him past Arnold Palmer and into fourth place alone on the PGA Tour’s career list. His next victory will tie him with Ben Hogan.
Golf is not a fair fight at the moment.
“I think maybe we ought to slice him open to see what’s inside,” Cink said. “Maybe nuts and bolts.”
Cink was only the latest victim in a winning streak that dates to Sept. 3, 2007, a date worth remembering.
Woods won the BMW Championship the following week at 262, breaking the tournament scoring record by five shots. He won the Tour Championship by a record eight shots, and the Buick Invitational by the same margin, another tournament record.
This is the third time Woods has won at least four straight PGA Tour events. He also won in Dubai three weeks ago on the European tour by coming back from a four-shot deficit.
“I think this is the best stretch I’ve ever played,” Woods said.
He has won six of his last seven PGA Tour events, 16 of his last 30 over the last two years.
PGA
At Playa Del Carmen, Mexico, Brian Gay won the Mayakoba Golf Classic for his first PGA Tour title, shooting a 1-under 69 for a two-stroke victory.
Gay, making his 293rd career start, came into the final round with a five-stroke lead and was hardly threatened. Runner-up Steve Marino (66) got within four strokes with four holes to play, but Gay made a long putt to save par on No. 16 to essentially seal the title and $630,000 check.
Gay at 16-under 264, one stroke better than Fred Funk had in winning the inaugural south-of-the-border event last year.
Champions Skins Game
At Kaanapali, Hawaii, Fuzzy Zoeller and Peter Jacobsen rallied to win the Champions Skins Game, winning six skins and $320,000 in alternate-shot play to beat defending champions Jack Nicklaus and Tom Watson.
Nicklaus and Watson won eight skins and a record $270,000 in the first nine holes Saturday, but were shut out Sunday. Gary Player and Loren Roberts finished third with $180,000 and Arnold Palmer and Jay Haas were shut out.
After Zoeller-Jacobsen and Nicklaus-Watson halved the final in regulation, Zoeller tapped in for par on the first extra hole to take the final $100,000.