Tiger halfway home to Grand Slam

FARMINGDALE, N.Y. -- A runaway winner again in the U.S. Open, Tiger Woods is halfway home to the Grand Slam and still miles ahead of anyone trying to stop him.

Challenged only briefly by two of his biggest rivals, Woods became the first player since Jack Nicklaus in 1972 to capture the first two major championships of the year with a three-stroke victory Sunday at Bethpage Black.

Next stop on his incredible ride: The British Open in Muirfield, five weeks away.

"I just want to celebrate this one," Woods said. "None of them are easy, but this one was real tough."

He made it harder with three-putt bogeys on his first two holes that quickly cut his lead to two shots. But Woods was rock-solid the rest of the way and simply couldn't be stopped -- not by Phil Mickelson, Sergio Garcia or even a 49-minute rain delay that threatened to put off the inevitable until Monday.

The only sour note --bogeys on two of his final three holes for a 2-over 72, the first time he has won a major with a final round over par.

He still finished three strokes ahead of Mickelson, who is now 0-for-40 in the majors but hardly felt like a loser.

"It's certainly a difficult challenge, five back to the best player in the world," Mickelson said after closing with a 70.

Woods already has won his own version of the slam. A year ago, he became the first player to win four straight professional majors, although purists have argued it must be done in a calendar year.

Don't bet against him.

"I would like to win the slam," he said. "I've done it before. Hopefully, I can do it again."

The question remains: Can anyone stop him?

His greatest asset, as always, is his mental toughness, a lesson his father taught him long ago.

"I told him, 'I promise you one thing: You'll never meet another person as tough as you,"' Earl Woods said during a telephone interview from his hotel room near the course. "He hasn't. And he won't."

At 26, Woods won his eighth major championship and now has claimed seven of the last 11 -- unprecedented in golf's four biggest events.

It was the first time the U.S. Open was played on a truly public golf course, but the Black Course at Bethpage State Park certainly held its own. Woods was the only player to break par over 72 holes, finishing at 3-under 277.

Perhaps when the New Yorkers get their course back next week and pay $39 greens fees on the weekend, they'll have an even greater appreciation of how good this guy is.

"It's awesome, winning your national title and, on top of that, on a public course in front of these fans," Woods said.

He has played only 22 majors as a pro, and five of those eight victories have come by at least three strokes.

Mickelson and Garcia each got to within two strokes at times, but not for long.

Woods simply gave them no chance. He missed only two fairways in the final round and putted for birdie on 17 out of 18 holes.

Mickelson showed plenty of heart, but it wasn't enough -- not with Woods in the lead and on top of his game.

Lefty closed to within two strokes of the lead with a two-putt birdie from the fringe on the par-5 13th to reach 2-under par.

Woods answered. He reached the 13th green with a 2-iron from 263 yards and narrowly missed the eagle putt. Still, his three-stroke lead was restored, and Mickelson made it easier for him with bogeys on the 16th and 17th holes.

It was Mickelson's seventh top-3 finish in a major, tying him with Harry "Lighthorse" Cooper with the most among players who have never won one.

Jeff Maggert had a 72 and finished third at 282, although he was never a factor.

Garcia was the only other player to make a run at Woods.

He got to within two strokes after Woods three-putted the first two holes, and stayed on his heels until the 22-year-old Spaniard made the kind of mistakes that a U.S. Open won't allow. Three times he overshot the green, wound up in ankle-deep grass and couldn't save par. Garcia had a 74 to finish fourth.

His only consolation was that Woods finally spoke to him -- but only after the Open had been decided. Earlier in the round, Garcia tried to be his pal, even retrieving a divot for Woods on the fourth hole.

Woods never looked at him. This was Sunday in a major championship, and Woods had only one thing on his mind.

Everyone else got the leftovers.

Nick Faldo made the most of a special exemption by closing with a 66-73 on the week to tie for fifth, earning him a trip back next year.

Scott Hoch, who said his goal was to break 80 the first time he saw Bethpage Black, made an ace on the 207-yard 17th hole for a 69 and also tied for fifth at 285.

The spoils went to Woods, who now has won as many majors as Tom Watson, and moved one closer to the record 18 majors won by Nicklaus.

He became only the fifth player to win the Masters and the U.S. Open in the same year. The others were Craig Wood (1941), Ben Hogan (1951, 1953), Arnold Palmer (1960) and Nicklaus in 1972.

Nicklaus went for the third leg at Muirfield, but finished second by one stroke to Lee Trevino, his chief rival at the time.

Right now, Woods doesn't have one.

None of the six players behind him at the start of the final round had the experience of winning a major. Their task was to beat the No. 1 player in the world, who has never lost a 54-hole lead in a major and is 24-2 when he leads going into the last day.

Garcia seemed like a logical choice to do this, especially after pouting earlier in the week that Woods was getting all the breaks.

Close to 50,000 people packed into Bethpage State Park and treated this genteel game like a championship fight when Woods and Garcia walked to the first tee. The only thing missing was a staredown.

Instead, Woods was the first to offer his hand to his playing partner, and after launching tee shots into the fairway, they walked down the steep slope and into the arena.

The final-round pressure of a U.S. Open only intensified when Woods' four-shot margin was cut in half before he got to the third tee -- a three-putt bogey from 45 feet on the first hole, another three-putt bogey on the second from about 40 feet.

Mickelson made a quick charge with a 6-foot birdie on the first, but an approach over the fifth green led to bogey, and he took a wild adventure on the next hole -- from bunker, to knee-high fescue, to bunker -- and had to made an 8-footer for bogey.

Even the battle with Garcia didn't hold up. The key swing came at the 489-yard seventh, with the Spaniard still only three strokes behind.

Garcia went just over the green into thick rough and failed to save par. Woods drained a 20-footer for his first birdie of the round, pointing to the hole as the ball disappeared.

Mickelson returned to make another small run, but that was only for show.

This wasn't Woods vs. Garcia, or even Woods vs. Mickelson.

He is playing only against history at the moment, and even that looks like a mismatch.