A blast from the past with Tiger in the hunt
ST. LOUIS — The ball rested on the edge of the cup, with its logo peeking into the hole for what felt like forever.
Back in the day, that ball dropped for Tiger Woods.
On Sunday, it wouldn't budge.
Yes, Woods finished second by two strokes to Brooks Koepka at the PGA Championship to extend his drought without a major for at least eight more months. But after the scrambling, club-slamming, fist-pumping, electrifying show he put on over a round of 6-underpar 64 — his best closing round at a major — who can argue golf isn’t more fun when Tiger’s in the mix?
“There’s nothing like it,” said Gary Woodland, who was in the twosome with the world’s best-known player. “The energy in that place was unbelievable.”
Even after the excruciating miss on No. 11 — one that looked a lot like his teetering, toppling chip on No. 16 at the Masters in 2005, except that one went in — Woods, 42, would not quit.
Shortly after 5 p.m., he had a 20-foot putt on the 16th green that would have tied him with Koepka, who was two holes behind but might as well have been playing on another course compared to the frenzy in front of him. That putt slid just past. And Woods’ last chance to apply real pressure vanished when he pushed his tee shot on the par-5 17th right of the creek running along the right side of the hole. Woods slammed the head of his driver to the ground, then swung it violently in frustration. He scrambled to make par, but by the time he reached the 18th fairway, he was three back of Koepka, who birdied 15 and 16 behind him.
On No. 18, Woods offered one final flourish. He drained his longest putt of the tournament — a 19footer putt for birdie — and pumped his fist to celebrate. Back in the day, that fist pump on the 18th green would have been to celebrate a win.
On this day, he was celebrating the grind — and the fact that he would not go away.
“I played hard,” he said after finishing the tournament at 14-under 266. “A bit of a struggle with my game today, but I hung in there.”
Woods never has been someone who was satisfied with second. But he said he hadn’t felt this good at a tournament that he didn’t win in a long time.
“I had to kind of figure this out on my own and it’s been really hard — a lot harder than people think,” he said. “And I’m just very pleased at what I’ve done so far … going from where I’ve come from, to now over the last year, it’s been pretty cool.”