Capelle On Golf

Good buddies Geoff Ogilvy and Adam Scott might be two of the nicest guys on tour. Maybe too nice for Woods, who is known for his Sunday glare and no talk rule. As late at the 10th hole on Saturday he was seen walking side-by-side with Ogilvy, talking, and smiling. No Sunday game face there.

In his three previous wins at Doral, Woods has recorded two 68s and a 63 on moving day. In the company of Ogilvy and Scott, however, his score did not budge in relation to par. When the horn went off suspending play for the day, Woods was even for 11 holes on a course that was giving up birdies in bunches.

Both Ogilvy and Scott gained ground on Woods and par, something that’s not suppose to happen when playing with Sir Woods. Ogilvy was -2, opening up a three shot lead on Tiger. Meanwhile Adam Scott, Butch Harmon’s celebrated protégé, was -4 on the day, pulling two ahead of Woods. Maybe he got the same advice that Phil Mickelson did at the Deutsche Bank last year on how to play with Tiger without self-destructing

A quartet of other players decided to join the party. Vijay Singh was six under over the first seven holes of the back nine, pulling even with Woods at -11. His onslaught included at eagle at 11 and a deuce at the 240 yard par 3 twelfth. Tim Clark burned up the front nine with a 31, and was also at -11 after 15 holes when play was suspended. Graeme Storm stormed up the leaderboard with a -7 effort through 15. Jim Furyk was -6 through 13. Both stood at -10, one back of Tiger.

Tiger’s streak is still alive, and he’s got 25 holes to make his move on Sunday. Every day is a new day as Tiger likes to say, one that requires constant adjustments to his game. Maybe he woke up on the wrong side of bed Saturday morning or possibly the Aussie’s Nice Power caught him off guard.

In any case, he’s faced with the biggest threat to his streak now that four of the world’s top 17 players surround him on the leaderboard. I wonder if he will open up with the red shirt with seven to play in the third round as a signal to the Aussies that it’s Sunday, that he’s all business now, and that there will be no more Mr. Nice Guy till the trophy celebration. Or maybe Sunday will be the day that Ogilvy or Scott steps up and becomes, at least for a day, the Tiger slayer that the game desperately needs if pro golf is to remain a competitive endeavor.

WGR – Score – Holes to Play
Ogilvy (17) -14 –25
Scott (5) -13 –25
Woods (1) -11 – 25
Singh (10) -11 –20
Clark (38) -11 – 21
Storm (136) -10 – 21
Furyk (9) -10 – 23

Starting this Tuesday - 22 Days of Masters Coverage