DORAL, Fla. — Even someone like former U.S. Open champion Geoff Ogilvy can acknowledge being a bit mesmerized by seeing Tiger Woods win tournament after tournament after tournament.
“It’s quite fun to watch,” Ogilvy said.
Sure, but watching doesn’t compare to beating Woods — especially when the world’s No. 1 hasn’t lost in six months.
Ogilvy won the rain-delayed CA Championship on Monday, saving a round that seemed in peril with a chip-in for par at the 13th hole and going on to claim his second victory in a World Golf Championship event. And not only did Ogilvy take down Tiger, he did it at Doral, where Woods had won each of the past three years.
So much for that perfect-season talk. The streak is over.
“It was going to end at some point,” Ogilvy said. “I’m very glad that I did it. It’s a nice place to do it, too, because he’s obviously owned this place for the last few years. He just had one of those weeks.”
A final round of 1-under 71 was enough for Ogilvy to finish at 17 under, one shot better than Retief Goosen, Jim Furyk and Vijay Singh, who all closed with 68s. Woods was fifth at 15 under, losing for the first time in six PGA Tour starts and seven worldwide.
“As players, it’s nice to see somebody else lift a trophy for a change,” Goosen said.
With the win, Ogilvy joined select company — only Woods (15) and Darren Clarke (two) have more than one WGC title.
“People don’t really understand, you need to have something happen, a positive thing happen to you out there in order to win tournaments,” Woods said. “I heard Geoff bladed one in the hole for par. That’s what you need to have happen. Those are the things that have happened to me, and things weren’t going that way this week.”
Indeed, Ogilvy got the biggest break at the most crucial time.
Woods started the morning five shots back with seven holes remaining and made his typical charge, closing within two strokes after making a 4-footer at the 17th. He birdied the 12th to start his day, then hit his tee shot within a foot at the par-3 15th for a tap-in.
At that very moment, two holes behind, Ogilvy seemed in trouble.
He pulled his 2-iron tee shot at the par-3 13th way left, and his chip from thick, dewy grass didn’t even reach the green — making bogey seem probable, until a most improbable shot followed.
Ogilvy’s second chip hopped twice, hit the pin and dropped straight in, giving the Australian a break he desperately needed. If it went past the cup, he surely could have been looking at double-bogey — since the ball clearly would have kept rolling for a while.
“That’s why you have to hit it on line,” Ogilvy said. “Flag gets in the way.”
Around the same time that chip dropped in, Ogilvy’s nearest pursuers began falling off.
Singh was the first one to make a run at Ogilvy, getting within a stroke before back-to-back bogeys doomed his chances. Furyk got within one after making birdie at the 17th, then missed the fairway at the finishing hole. Adam Scott started the morning four shots back, then inexplicably missed a 2-foot tap-in and lost all hope of making a run.
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