Woods Chops Down Another Foe

A growing sense of inevitability simmered in the sizzling sun at Pumpkin Ridge Golf Club Friday in Cornelius, Ore., as Tiger Woods moved relentlessly toward his third consecutive U.S. Amateur title.

The question of whether Woods will win is becoming more and more like asking if he will turn professional. Everyone knows the answer. It’s all just a matter of time.

For the fourth straight match, Woods toyed with an opponent early then put the hammer down on the holes that bridge the two nines.

His victim in the quarterfinals was D.A. Points, a 19-year-old LSU student. Points was only 1-down after Woods lost his ball in the woods on No. 7. But Woods birdied Nos. 9 and 12, hitting to 6 feet both times, to go 3-up and closed the match out on No. 16, winning 3-and-2.

Woods is two victories away from becoming the first player to win three consecutive amateur titles - today’s semifinals and Sunday’s 36-hole final.

Woods plays Stanford teammate Joel Kribel in the semifinals. Kribel was 1-down after Duke Delcher holed out from the fairway for an eagle on No. 17. But Kribel eagled No. 18 to even the match and won on the first sudden-death hole with a birdie.

Robert Floyd, son of PGA touring pro Raymond Floyd, also advanced to the semifinals with a 2-up victory over Brian Novoa.

Steve Scott defeated Buddy Marucci, the man Woods beat in last year’s finals, 1-up by winning the last hole in the other quarterfinal match.

It was the 16th consecutive victory for Woods in U.S. Amateur play, one off the record by Harvie Ward in the late 1950s.

Asked if he was playing better than ever, Woods said: “There’s a simple answer to that - yes. Every Amateur so far I’ve gotten better.”

So much better that even Points applauded on the first tee when Woods was introduced, as if realizing it was only a matter of time.

Which it was.

PGA

Rain and lightning suspended Friday’s second round of the World Series of Golf in Akron, Ohio, with most of the field still on the course.

Defending champion Greg Norman, starting the day four shots off the pace, birdied four of the first six holes to jump into contention before the elements ended his round on No. 9.

Paul Goydos and Billy Mayfair, the first-round co-leaders along with Hidemichi Tanaka, each had a birdie and a par on their two holes to move to 5-under and share the lead.

Seniors

At Concord, Mass., defending champion Isao Aoki, who offset an opening bogey with five front-nine birdies, and Larry Ziegler, who birdied his last two holes, shot 67s and were tied for the first-round lead of the $800,000 Bank of Boston Senior PGA Classic.

LPGA

At Dayton, Ohio, Pat Hurst shot a 5-under-par 67 and held a one-stroke lead over Clarkston’s Robin Walton and five other players after the rain-delayed first round of the Star Bank LPGA Classic.

The group at 68 included Walton, Nancy Lopez, Elaine Crosby, Laura Davies, Kelly Robbins and Marianne Morris.