GOLF / U.S. AMATEUR CHAMPIONSHIP : Woods Has to Rally to Beat UCLA’s Gleason in First Match

Tiger Woods now knows he can play with the big boys.

After squandering a 2-up advantage with five holes to play, Woods rebounded to defeat Ted Gleason of Noblesville, Ind., on the first extra hole in the first round of match play at the U.S. Amateur Championship Friday at Muirfield Village Golf Club.

The match began Thursday but was called because of heavy rain and lightning after the players had teed off on No. 14. There was a 5 1/2-hour delay before the matches resumed Friday.

The second and third rounds are scheduled to be played today. Woods, 16, from Cypress, will face Tim Herron of Wayzata, Minn., in the second round.

Also advancing were two-time champion Jay Sigel, UNLV’s Warren Schutte and Manny Zerman of San Diego, the runner-up in this championship the last two years.

Medalist David Duval, however, three-putted the 18th green from 15 feet to lose 1-up to Tom McKnight, the last qualifier for the 64-player, match-play field after surviving a two-day, four-hole playoff.

Woods, two-time winner of the U.S. Junior Amateur championship, said winning the playoff showed him that he can play at the next level of competition.

“It was gut-check time,” Woods said. “And I proved to myself I had the guts to do it at this level.”

Gleason, a senior at UCLA, said Woods definitely has a chance at winning the tournament.

“Tiger is a real player,” Gleason said. “If he can stay on an even keel, not get too high or too low, he’s got the game to win. I wouldn’t want to bet either way.”

Gleason said he thought the suspension on Thursday might help him more than hurt him.

“I liked the delay,” Gleason said. “One of my strong points is I keep myself on an even keel. A lot of things could have happened during the delay to bother him.”

The delay didn’t bother him, Woods said. It was the cool weather after the rain that he noticed.

“I felt good, I was just a little stiff in the morning,” said Woods, who has been bothered by back spasms this week. “I think the cold weather probably tightened it up a little bit.”

Gleason finished No. 14 with a birdie to cut Woods’ lead to 1-up.

Woods ran into more trouble at Nos. 15 and 16, three-putting both greens, and Gleason suddenly was leading.

At the par-5, 485-yard No. 15, Woods hit his second shot short into a bunker. “From the bunker I hit long, just where you don’t want to hit it,” Woods said. “I three-jacked (putted) it from there, three-jacked the 16th and I was down one.”

But Gleason lost his advantage on the 424-yard No. 17. He hooked his tee shot out of bounds and wound up with a double-bogey. Woods won with a bogey to tie the match.

At 18, Gleason put his approach shot on the fringe of the green about 10 feet from the cup. Woods landed in a deep bunker just in front of the green. But he blasted out within three feet of the cup.

“I caught a break on that bunker shot,” Woods said. “I thought it would be buried. I put it up so high, but it wasn’t.”

Gleason’s birdie try slid by the hole, and Woods made his putt to force the playoff.

At No. 1, the first hole of the playoff, the roles were reversed. Gleason hit his second shot short into a bunker. Woods hit a 6-iron 205 yards to within 15 feet of the cup. He then sank the putt to win the match.

Woods said this was the first time he has won in match play outside of a junior tournaments and high school matches.

“I’m very good at match play,” he said. “The difference at this level and the junior level is these guys don’t fold. I feel a little better now that I’ve got one match under my belt, but I’m always nervous.”