woods among greatest

By Frank Malley, PA Chief Sports Writer

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At the end, Tiger Woods punched the air with both fists, let out a raucous cry of 'Yes' and then cried like a baby in the arms of his caddie Steve Williams and his wife Elin.

The emotion, coming so soon after the death of his father and golfing mentor Earl, was overwhelming.

But everything else Woods did in winning the 135th Open by two shots with a total of 18 under par was the epitome of control.

It was his third Open, his 11th major. In my view it was also irrevocable proof that he is the most accomplished golfer and arguably the greatest sportsman who has ever lived.

True, Muhammad Ali touched the hearts of more, Pele's magical moments traversed the generations and Jack Nicklaus has won more majors, 18 of them.

But Woods is catching up quick, with greater style and dominance, and given health and fitness the record some said would never be beaten surely will soon be consigned to history.

That is the achievement of Woods. With him history this past decade has been dismantled and systematically reconstructed.

For those who like their genius wrapped in the simplest of packages, Woods' Open could also not have been more efficient.

Predictably, some will complain about a lack of drama and there is no doubt Woods' ability to play at his best when the tension is at its height can reduce even wonderful leaderboards to a procession.

But let's not carp about that. Let's glory in the manner of the achievement.

Woods did not pummel the opposition with the brute force of his hitting as he has done so often in the past. Nor did he rely on luck.

He worked out Hoylake's pot-bunkered fairways and constructed a strategy to negotiate them. A strategy which saw him deploy his driver just once in 72 holes and visit just three bunkers all tournament. A strategy of total concentration plus iron play of the the highest order.

How tempting it must have been for Woods to have abandoned his plan when the field closed in on the third day, reducing his lead to one shot with five major winners among the 15 players bunched at the top of the leaderboard.

He didn't. Instead he told whoever wanted to listen the best way to play this intriguing course. And if they listened then there was not much evidence of it when he teed off with Sergio Garcia.

"Do it for Liverpool, Tiger," came a cry from the gallery.

Now Woods had many reasons to want to collect his 11th Major. For the glory, for his father Earl, for the chance to close in on Nicklaus' record.

Liverpool might have crossed his mind, although somehow I doubt it.

But he was in good humour. There is no place Woods would rather be than at the head of a major field going into the final round.

He never even blinked when a mobile phone went off on the second, although it gave the crowd a good laugh when the offender turned out to be a marshal.

And when his 12-foot putt shaved the hole when it had looked certain to drop Hoylake witnessed one of the broadest grins of the week.

Tiger in a bad mood is dangerous. Tiger in a good one is virtually unbeatable. There is nothing to massage his psyche better than a reachable par five.

And with Garcia fading after two early bogeys, while Ernie Els was drawing level, Woods pounced with perfect timing at the 528-yard fifth.

It was too early to be the defining hole but the eagle extracted there - with a precise drive, a splendid iron and a glorious 20-foot putt - stuck a dagger into the rest of the field.

Suddenly, he was two shots clear and as everyone knows there is no better front-runner in the history of the game.

Woods has never lost a major when he has been leading at the halfway stage. That tells of a nerve of iron and an ability to intimidate the opposition like no other.

And that is the only explanation for what happened at Royal Liverpool. For why there was no challenge from Els and Jim Furyk and Garcia.

True, Chris DiMarco came within a shot when he birdied 13 and Woods bogeyed 12 and DiMarco then sank an 80-footer for par on 14.

But just when little detonations of applause signalled the chase might be on, Woods sank a birdie at 14, the hole which saw his dramatic four-iron eagle in the second round.

He went on to win without any serious challenge. Clinically. Brilliantly. Now alongside the great Walter Hagen on those 11 majors. For me, however, already the greatest golfer of them all.