David vs. Goliath

David vs. Goliath

It was Bob Costos who said, “Tiger Woods exhausts all superlatives.” Tiger proved that again over the 91 holes of the U.S. Open, which lasted the four days of the tournament at Torrey Pines in Southern California, into Monday and a 18 hole playoff with 45 year old Rocco Mediate, who was ranked 158 next to Woods’ No.1, and then finally into sudden death where, on the first hole, Tiger prevailed by getting another clutch birdie to Rocco’s par. He had gotten two eagles and a birdie on the back nine to leap into first place and on Saturday; and on Sunday, with Rocco in the clubhouse watching, Tiger sank a nerve-wracking 12-foot putt to tie for the lead. It was a bumpy ride to the hole but the ball caught the right edge and fell in. 50,000 people went wild and Tiger did a double pump with both fists and yelped like a banshee, The U. S. Open, unlike other tournaments, has a rule that an 18-hole playoff must take place on Monday.

Even up to this point the match was already considered a classic, with Tiger scrambling while hobbled by a painful knee, due to an operation a month ago, as he made some incredibly difficult shots to stay abreast of Rocco who was playing the game of his life. It brought to mind that confrontation Tiger had with Bob May in 2001. May, another low-ranked player who was playing way over his head, pushed Tiger to the limits just as Rocco was doing. It was a prototypical David vs. Goliath situation.

25,000 people showed up to see the playoff, an unusually large number for a Monday contest. I was at Click’s Pool Hall playing 8 ball and the playoff was on a big TV next to our table. My concentration was so split we finally quit playing and retreated to a Famous Sam’s in the neighborhood to watch the final four holes on a better television. The crowd seemed to be cheering equally for Tiger and Rocco, Mr. Everyman who was going toe to toe with the best golfer on the planet. Rocco was different than other opponents because rather than intimidated by Tiger he was simply excited to be there and playing well at the right time. He was amiable, chatty, somewhat like Lee Trevino, who talked a lot and kept everyone loose. He gained a lot of fans with his carefree attitude. But when he got over the ball he was quite focused on what needed to be done.

Both competitors had shone through this remarkable Open. It was an event that would long be talked about for its drama, clutch shots, and its Odd Couple pairing. Tiger got his 14^th Major, which means he needs four more to tie Jack Nicklaus, and, if memory serves, his 70th win. He’s on top of the world, the only threat to his continuing dominance being that gimpy knee that already has been operated on more than once. It could possibly shorten his career, or so wondered the pundits of the golf world. As for Rocco he made a cool $810,000, his largest paycheck ever, and became the 51^st millionaire on the list for 2008, and there’s two majors and many other events on the docket for the rest of the year. He had the time of his life competing with Tiger like he did, and although he lost, he was satisfied by his performance. And well he should be.

There was a farmer who brought a large ostrich egg into his hen house. He set it down as the hens stared at it. He told the hens take this egg as your role model. Try to match its size. That was a story told by one of the golf wits on the Golf Channel; it was by way of analogy to Tiger’s dominance on the Tour. Goliath or ostrich egg, Tiger is BOSS.