Results don't lie: Ernie, Perry, Tiger roll into British
Looking for a short list of contenders for this week's British Open? Let the leaderboards speak for themselves: Three of the top 11 players in the world -- including Nos. 1 and 2 -- will head to Royal St. George's having won their last events, each in impressive fashion.
Sunday's win was Els' fifth of the year worldwide, and third on the European tour. The Big Easy couldn't be peaking at a better time, with his Open title defense less than a week away.
The Els we saw this week resembled the one we saw earlier in 2003, when he opened the season with two PGA Tour victories, two European tour titles and a runner-up finish in his first five events. In that span, he set or tied the 72-hole scoring record on both tours.
The warning has been sounded loud and clear: Look out for Big Ern at Royal St. George's.
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| Perry |
You can't ignore him now.
On the hottest streak of his career, Perry won the Greater Milwaukee Open by a stroke on Sunday for his third victory in his last four starts. In the one event he didn't win -- the U.S. Open -- he finished tied for third.
In Milwaukee, Perry entered the final round with a one-stroke lead, but found himself three down after a bogey on the 12th and a double on 13. But Perry made three birdies in his final four holes, including one from 22 feet on No. 18 and a 3-footer to win it on 18.
The rain-soaked GMO was Perry's first event since the U.S. Open, but the down time clearly didn't cool him off. He was four strokes back after opening the tournament 69-67, but a 66-66 weekend made him the fourth three-time winner on the PGA Tour this year. He's also the seventh player to surpass $3 million in winnings this season (the first time he's done that in his career).
''I don't know why all of a sudden I'm winning golf tournaments,'' Perry said after his win. ''It's just my time, and I believe in my heart I'm going to win.''
He'll be at a bit of a disadvantage at the Open since he'll have to travel across the Atlantic and adjust to the time difference later than most, but the wave of momentum he's riding should take a little of the pain out of that process. He'll also get less time to acquaint himself with a tricky Royal St. George's track, and with links golf in general.
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| Woods |
Woods won his last start before the Open Championship as well, going wire-to-wire at the Western Open by five strokes (just as Ernie did in Scotland) last week to quell the talk about a slump.
He was 10 strokes up after the front nine at Cog Hill last Sunday, but a Rich Beem birdie run cut that in half. Still, the win was never in doubt in another dominant Woods performance.
Woods will also be looking for vindication this week. He comes into the British having shut up the slump talkers, but without any major championship hardware. He's currently without a major for the first time since 1999, having not won one since last year's U.S. Open. Oh, and there's that third-round 81 last year at Murifield still hovering over his head as well.
While Perry and Els were tuning up their games in tournament conditions, Woods chose to stay at home in Orlando to get ready. He's in England now, and gave Royal St. George's a test drive on Sunday, saying he was confused by a few holes.
''You're going to have to play a few rounds to get an idea where to go,'' he said. ''On a couple of holes, I didn't know which way to go.''
You can bet he'll find his way just fine before Thursday.
Up next ...
British Open
Ernie Els defends his title at Royal St. George's in golf's oldest championship. The last time the Open was held there in 1993, Greg Norman set the all-time scoring record. The course has undergone major changes since.
PGA Tour: B.C. Open
While the best are in England at the Open, the rest are in New York playing in the PGA Tour's event this week. It's got the smallest purse of the year ($3 million), but the winner still gets an invite to the 2004 Mercedes Championships and a two-year PGA Tour exemption. It's also a great opportunity for rookies to make a move on the money list.
LPGA Tour: Big Apple Classic
The women are in New York as well. Gloria Park defends her title against a field that includes Suzy Whaley, who's playing her final tune-up before her appearance on the PGA Tour at the Greater Hartford Open.
Champions Tour: Off
Nationwide Tour: Off
David Lefort is ESPN.com's golf editor, and can be reached at david.m.lefort@espn3.com. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
