Tiger Woods won his 13th major on Sunday at the PGA Championship, adding yet another chapter to his growing legacy of achievement and stepping even closer to Jack Nicklaus’s record of 18 major victories.
Tiger’s victory came as little surprise, Woods has never been beaten in a major after holding the 54 hole lead and he kept his streak intact. Going into the eight hole, Woods had built his lead all the way to five strokes over his nearest competitor, and the rest of the round appeared to be a foregone conclusion. However, Woods faltered a bit down the stretch while Ernie Els and Woody Austin came close to catching Woods on the back nine.
Woody Austin mounted some serious pressure on Woods, after three straight birdies on the back nine, he was within one shot of Tiger’s lead. A birdie putt on 15 which missed would have tied Tiger who bogied 14. Ernie Els also came very close to catching Tiger. Els made six birdies throughout the final round, yet three crucial bogies kept him from realistically mounting any pressure on Tiger. "I am what I am – I can’t change that. Tiger, he’s what he is and he’s not making the mistakes I’m making. In a way that’s frustrating, but in a way that’s got to be a positive, too. If I can start eliminating these mistakes I can start really challenging for tournaments again," said Els. Yet Sunday was again Tiger’s alone. He maintained his one shot lead and built on it maintaining his flawless record of closing majors, saying "I just kept telling myself, Ernie and Woody were making runs. But I still had the lead. And if I made pars they would have to come get me. And if they ever made a birdie on one of the holes to tie me, I can birdie the same hole and it was all square, I had the lead again."
This major is likely to be differentiated from the others for one reason, it is the first time Sam has seen her dad win a major. "Well, it’s a feeling I’ve never had before, having Sam there and having Elin there it feels a lot more special when you have your family there. And it used to be my mom and dad. And now Elin and now we have our own daughter. So it’s evolved, and this one feels so much more special than the other majors. The British Open last year was different, but this one was certainly so special and so right to have Elin and Sam there. I wasn’t really paying attention when I saw them. I was so excited and just want to give Elin and Sam a kiss and get back to signing my score card."
With this victory, Tiger not only steps closer to Jack’s record of 18, but also ties the gentleman amateur – Bobby Jones at 13 career majors. Woods said, "Any time you’re in conversations with Bobby Jones and Jack Nicklaus, Walter Hagen, just in general it makes it — it makes you understand that you’ve had a nice run in your career. And I could not ask for a better start to my career." However, Tiger is maintaining his focus and realizes that chasing down Jack is still a long ways away, saying "18 is just a long way away. And even though I’m at 13, it’s still a long way away. You can’t get it done in one year. It’s going to take time, as I’ve said before in the past. It took Jack 20 years to get it done. 20-plus years. It’s one of those things where it’s going to take some time."
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