Issue of a Rival for Tiger Is Still Nothing Major

Here we go again. Somebody wins a tournament that Tiger Woods is playing and you’ve got the New Rival or The Gap is Closing. It happened again last week at the season-opening Mercedes Championships, where Sergio Garcia won in a playoff with David Toms, thus establishing an even more hackneyed story line as it relates to Woods (which everything in golf does) ... New Old Rival.

Remember when 19-year-old Garcia challenged 23-year-old Woods at the 1999 PGA Championship at Medinah--which Woods won, by the way? Why, it would be El Nino vs. El Tigre for years to come, no?

Actually, not. Of course, that may happen, just not until Garcia beats Woods in a major. And at the present time, Tiger leads in that department, six majors to zero.

There always seems to be a huge rush to push somebody in Tiger’s way (hello, David Duval), and because everyone loves comparisons, check out where Woods and Garcia both stood at age 22. By the way, Garcia turned 22 Wednesday.

By his 22nd birthday, Woods had won six PGA Tour events--four in 1997--including the Masters. Garcia has three--the Mercedes, plus the Colonial and the Buick Classic last year.

If you go by statistics alone, Garcia had a semi-comparable year to Woods in 2001. Woods won five tournaments, the money title and had the best scoring average, but Garcia was close behind Woods in scoring and was a much better putter (No. 24 to Woods’ No. 124).

Before he turned 26 two weeks ago, Woods won 29 PGA Tour events. Sergio has three years to win 23 more to catch up.

This week, Tiger is in New Zealand collecting a $2-million appearance fee and Garcia is in Honolulu at the Sony Open. The next time Woods and Garcia will be face to face is at Pebble Beach Jan. 31-Feb. 3. Stay tuned.

Face Time

From Hale Irwin, 57, on 17-year-old Ty Tryon, who makes his debut as a card-carrying PGA Tour member in two weeks at the Phoenix Open:

“When I was 17, I was looking in the mirror wondering when those pimples were going to go away.”

More Irwin

Irwin, who is playing in the Senior Skins in two weeks, thinks Tryon should have stayed in school.

“Those years in school give you a maturation you just can’t get otherwise. I think you need to be in your peer group,” he said.

“The tour is not normal. The traveling is not normal. And, God forbid, if he ever gets a health problem, what would he fall back on?

“We are shortsighted in seeing the great success he has had. I worry more for the individual than I do whether or not he is going to make a big splash on the tour.... Somewhere along the line, that education is really helpful.”

The Economist

All right, so we’re in a recession. And that extends to the Senior PGA Tour as well, according to Irwin.

“I think there are issues out there,” he said. “Are we losing some sponsorships? Do we have sponsors who are wobbling? Yeah. Look at the number of people who have lost their jobs. I don’t think we’re in worse shape than anybody else.”

Is that supposed to be comforting?

Phil of It

Remember Phil Mickelson? Sure you do. Lefty, makes a mint on his off-course bets, makes a mint on it (for that matter), still trying to win a major. It’s just that we haven’t seen much of Mickelson lately, if you don’t count the air time he got during Game 7 of the World Series when the Fox cameras found him in the box seats ... instead of defending his title at the Tour Championship.

Mickelson, however, was a new father--his second daughter was born Oct. 23--so he gets some slack. But Mickelson still wasn’t working last week at the season-opening Mercedes Championships and hasn’t played an official event since Aug. 26, a mere 41/2-month layoff that ends next week when he tees it up at the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic. If the Hope seems like an odd place for Mickelson to show up, it is

Food Update

News item: Noted chef Wolfgang Puck to open a restaurant in a 640 square-foot tent between the third and ninth holes at Riviera during the Nissan Open.

Reaction: Suddenly, players will find those bogeys on No. 3 and No. 9 no longer leave a bad taste in their mouths.

Birthday Update

News item: Ben Crenshaw turns 50 on Friday and will make his Senior PGA Tour debut in three weeks at the Royal Caribbean Classic at Key Biscayne, Fla.

Reaction: If he’s 50, then that blade putter of his is eligible for Medicare.

It’s a Grueling Job

The PGA Tour moves from Maui to Oahu this week for the Sony Open, but the players who were at the Mercedes are probably going through some withdrawal this week.

They weren’t just pampered at the Ritz-Carlton at Kapalua, they were everything but powdered.

It wasn’t only the greeting at check-in with scented oshibori towels, it was the “bath butler” who was available to draw a bubble bath that included music, a towel warmer, champagne and chocolate truffles.

Different Too

From Joe Durant, defending champion at the Hope, about the pro-am format: “It’s quite an eclectic mix of people.”

Eclectic? Usually, when an athlete uses that word, he’s describing a light bulb.

Birdies, Bogeys, Pars

The SBC Senior Classic, to be played March 1-3 at Valencia Country Club, is looking for volunteers. Details: (661) 295-4690.

Another one bites the dust? For 2003, Anheuser-Busch is reconsidering its sponsorship of the Michelob Championship on the PGA Tour, a tournament that has been held in Williamsburg, Va., for 21 years and has had the brewery as a sponsor since 1977.

It didn’t get much attention, but Justin Leonard’s signing to use a Precept ball is noteworthy because he has been a major endorser with Titleist since he turned pro in 1994.

The new name of the Nabisco Championship (formerly the Nabisco Dinah Shore, the Colgate Dinah Shore) is the Kraft Nabisco Championship. The tournament will be played March 28-31 at Mission Hills Country Club.