Woods May Be Feeling Heat as History Awaits

What’s longer than a par-five, deeper than a bunker, more difficult than a shot from behind a tree and higher than a triple bogey?

At this moment in golf, it’s the burden of history, that pesky thing that has sticky arms wrapped around Tiger Woods and is squeezing really hard.

This is the 96th U.S. Amateur Championship and no one has won three in a row. Woods can do it today.

The 20-year-old from Cypress is one 36-hole walk through the furnace at Pumpkin Ridge Golf Club and one more match-play victory away from a record third consecutive amateur title and his latest trip to visit the record book.

Woods came from two holes down after 10 holes and scored a 3-and-1 semifinal victory over Stanford teammate Joel Kribel in oppressive heat Saturday.

In the other semifinal, Steve Scott won the last three holes and defeated Robert Floyd, 3 and 2, in a matchup between University of Florida players.

For Woods, it’s the end of another weeklong march though largely undisturbed territory. His victory against Kribel was his 17th successive in match play, which ties Harvie Ward’s mark.

Woods, who is 41-3 in USGA match play that includes juniors, is 19-2 in the Amateur. His winning percentage of .905 is the highest of anyone who has played at least 20 matches. Bobby Jones is second at 43-8 and .843.

Woods is the first player since Jones to reach a final with the chance to win a third consecutive Amateur title. Jones won in 1925 and 1926, lost the 1927 final to George Von Elm, then won again in 1927, 1928 and 1930.

But as far as talking about his place in history, maybe it would be better left to someone else.

“How important is it?” Woods said. “Not very, not right now. I can’t afford to think about it. That will all happen after the tournament is over.”

Woods actually may not have thought much about it, but Kribel certainly has. How good is Woods? Kribel has an idea.

“To win two in a row is just phenomenal,” Kribel said. “And to be playing in the finals for three, that’s unbelievable.

“If you have just one bad match, that’s all it takes. If one person gets hot, that’s all it takes. You can get beat at any time. To win 18 straight matches, if he wins [today], would be unheard of.”

For a while Saturday, Kribel was that one hot player he was talking about, and not only because of the steamy weather, with the temperature near 100 degrees again.

Kribel, a Stanford sophomore, birdied the first hole and the fourth hole to go 2-up when Woods three-putted. But at No. 6, Kribel missed an eight-foot slightly downhill putt that would have given him a 3-up lead and Woods two-putted from the next county to stay close.

And after they both drove the fairway bunker to the left on the next hole, Woods put his next shot in ankle-deep rough to the right, but still was able to run his ball up just short of the green and remain 2-down.

“I could have been more up,” Kribel said. “But what could I do?”

Meanwhile, Woods was hanging around, not getting too far behind, waiting for his chance. It came on the 10th, a 194-yard par three.

“I admit it,” Woods said. “I was prepared to go 3-down with eight holes to go.”

He felt that way because Kribel knocked his ball to six feet. But he missed the birdie putt. Woods had a delicate chip from about 40 feet with eight feet of break and got the ball to stop within three feet, then made it to halve the hole.

“That obviously was the big swing,” Kribel said. “And after that, I didn’t hit the ball nearly as well.”

Woods took the 11th hole when Kribel drove into the rough, squared the match on No. 13 when Kribel missed the green and went 1-up at the par-five 14th when Kribel drove a fairway bunker and Woods made a 15-foot putt for eagle.

On the 16th, Woods went 2-up after Kribel drove into the trees. Woods won the 17th when Kribel missed the green, then conceded his opponent’s birdie putt.

Woods finished by winning five of the last seven holes.

After it was over, Woods had a handshake for Kribel, a hug for his mother and a mind-set not to think too far ahead.

“I’ve got 36 holes, I have to get up at 4:30 in the morning, there’s no rest, you’re always playing,” he said. “And with this heat, it makes it even worse.”

It’s clear they’re not going to make this history business easy for him.

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U.S. Amateur

SATURDAY’S MATCHES

* Semifinals

Tiger Woods def. Joel Kribel, 3 and 1

Steve Scott def. Robert Floyd, 3 and 2

TODAY’S MATCH

* 36-hole final (1 p.m., Channel 4)

Tiger Woods vs. Steve Scott