Golf
Royal Troon poses challenge

By Doug Ferguson
The Associated Press

TED S. WARREN / AP Tiger Woods hits a tee shot on No. 7 yesterday at Royal Troon in Troon, Scotland, during a practice round for the British Open.

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TROON, Scotland — Tiger Woods played one practice round on what seemed to be two courses yesterday.

The world's top-ranked golfer walked to the 10th tee at the far end of Royal Troon and turned to face a breeze off the Irish Sea. Glancing back at the first nine holes he played, Woods smiled and said, "That was a nice little course, wasn't it?"

Then, staring ahead at a blind tee shot over mounds of gorse — a spiny shrub — on a 438-yard hole that begins one of the most daunting back nines for a British Open course, Woods sternly said, "This is where it starts.

"That was the JV. This is the varsity."

The British Open starts Thursday at Royal Troon.

The outward nine plays with the prevailing wind and is 3,462 yards with two par 5s, one of them reachable in two with as little as a 7-iron for the second shot. The inward nine is 3,713 yards and plays into the teeth of the wind, yet it has merely one par-5 hole.

"You're going to see a lot of birdies and, sure enough, some eagles on the front nine," Mark Calcavecchia said. "But then you get to the 10th tee, and the fun starts. If the wind is blowing pretty good, which I hope it does, I've got to believe the back nine will play ... five shots harder."

It was blowing hard Sunday evening when Mark O'Meara came to the 457-yard closing hole and barely reached the fairway with one of his best drives. It was blowing moderately yesterday morning when Woods cracked a 3-iron toward the 222-yard 17th hole and watched the ball barely creep up to the putting surface.

"I can't get there with that," Woods said under his breath.
 
This Jekyll-and-Hyde links will stage its eighth British Open, with the focus this year on Woods trying to end his 0-for-8 drought in major championships, Phil Mickelson attempting to add to an illustrious season that already includes a Masters green jacket and Ernie Els of South Africa with another outside chance to become No. 1 in the world ranking.

Mostly, the attention will be directed to the crackle of flags atop the clubhouse. After all, the official club history is titled "The Breezy Links o'Troon."

"You try to make your score going out," said Lee Westwood, whose best finish in a British Open was a tie for 10th at Royal Troon in 1997. "I remember last time there were a lot of guys who were 4- and 5-under par on the first eight holes. And then you try to hang on."

Not all of the first nine holes play like a local municipal course. The shortest hole in Open history, No. 8, is also one of the most punishing — the 123-yard "Postage Stamp" that can turn fortunes quickly.

The green is narrow, with two pot bunkers to the left, one in front and two to the right. O'Meara tossed a ball in the soft sand yesterday, blasted it out and watched it roll across the green toward another bunker.

Herman Tissies, a German amateur, was bunkered left of the green in the 1950 British Open. It took him five shots to get out — to a bunker on the right. He eventually made a 15.

Woods was trying to get back into contention in the final round in 1997, but took a triple bogey on the hole.