Woods Cruises to Bridgestone Invitational Victory

The unblemished victory was Woods' third in a row and sixth overall at the Bridgestone Invitational, as well as his fourth of the season.

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AKRON, Ohio - Rory Sabbatini played with the "old" Tiger Woods on Sunday.

You know the one. The man with the steely eyes, synchronized swing and silky putting stroke who can seize control of a golf tournament and make the rest of the field feel like they're back-up singers trying to drown out the Mormon Tabernacle Choir.

And Woods did just that on Sunday at the World Golf Championships-Bridgestone Invitational, overcoming a one-stroke deficit by the time he finished the fourth hole and going on to win the tournament by a tidy eight strokes.

By the time he made the turn, the only suspense was whether Woods could finish the final round at the major-ly difficult South Course at Firestone Country Club without a bogey. He did, preserving the 65 with a chip-in par at No. 9 and an 8-footer on the final hole.

"I remember back in 2000 at the U.S. Open on 16 when I had to make that putt for par," Woods said, thinking back to his major-championship record, 15-stroke win. "People wonder why you're grinding do hard. Well, I didn't want to drop a shot.

"I played so hard all day, and the whole idea was not to drop a shot, put the heat on the guys, once I got off to the great start for them to come get me. I just did not want to end the day that way, with a bogey."

The unblemished victory was Woods' third in a row and sixth overall at the Bridgestone Invitational, as well as his fourth of the season. Only Sam Snead, who won the Greater Greensboro Open eight times over four decades, has won a single event more times.

"It's hard to describe, but this golf course just gives me a bunch of confidence every time I come here," Woods said, soaked from the rain but smiling broadly.

Woods earned $1.35 million and 4,725 FedExCup points, which all but assured him of the top seed going into the Playoffs. Only Vijay Singh and Jim Furyk can mathematically catch him, and they would have to play both the PGA Championship and Wyndham Championship, which is the final event in the regular season, to have a chance to do so.

Sabbatini, who now has taken the lead into the final round twice this year only to be beaten by Woods, tied for second with Justin Rose at even par. The Englishman rose to the occasion with a 68 Sunday while Sabbatini shot a 4-over 74.

"I think Rory and I were in different situations today," Rose said. "For me, vying for second place was an exciting prospect. ... With Rory, maybe it's a slight letdown where obviously all week he's been right in the lead.

"But at the same time, second place is still very much worth playing for, especially when someone is seven or eight ahead. I think he's got to accept that second is the next best thing, if there is such a thing."

For Sabbatini, that's doubtful. A week after losing to Woods at the Wachovia Championship, the brash young South African had said that the undisputed No. 1 player in the world looked "more beatable than ever." He talked about how much he liked that "new Tiger," too.

Given two chances this year, though, the chastened Sabbatini hasn't been able to get the job done. He said he made too many mistakes on Sunday to put any pressure on Woods -- and "in a sense, I just played into his game," Sabbatini admitted.

Woods, for his part, refuses to get caught up in any talk of a rivalry between the two. He simply points out that he's won both tournaments. Game, set and match.

"Everyone knows how Rory is, and I just go out there and let my clubs do the talking," Woods said.

"Today he played significantly better than he did in the final round at (the) Wachovia (Championship)," Sabbatini said. "He struck the ball better. He made all the shots he needed to. He was definitely playing a lot better golf today than five, six weeks ago."

That's one thing the two can agree on.

"No doubt. No doubt," Woods said. "The one at Charlotte, I made everything. I did not hit it all that well on Sunday, but I just holed everything. That's the only reason why I probably won that tournament."

With the dominating victory in Akron, the 58th of his career, Woods has now established himself as the overwhelming favorite heading into the PGA Championship next week -- as if there was any doubt. He planned to leave for Tulsa on Sunday evening.

"I'm not really anxious," Woods said, joking. "What is it, 120 (degrees) today?"

The game's No. 1 player has only played the week before a major five other times, and the Bridgestone Invitational marked the first since 2002. He's only won one major when he has -- the 2000 PGA Championship where he beat Bob May in a playoff.

At Southern Hills, Woods will be looking for his first win in a major in 2007, and his 13th overall. He tied for 12th at the Open Championship two weeks ago and shared second at the both the Masters and U.S. Open, but appears well prepared for the finale.

"I didn't really hit it all that well with my irons (at the British Open), and this week I hit it a little bit better, which was nice," Woods said. "I didn't putt as well as I did at the British, but I've gotten everything kind of more organized.

"I feel like I am in better shape heading into this one than I (was) going into the last major."

Story by: Helen Ross

Courtesy: PGATOUR.com

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