Woods Gets a Firm Grip on Taylor-Made Victory

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. â€”  Tiger Woods, who turned professional eight weeks ago and has played brilliant golf ever since, won his second tournament in three weeks on Sunday at the Disney Classic.

But he needed some help.

Woods avoided a playoff when Taylor Smith, who finished with a birdie on No. 18 to tie Woods at 21-under par, was disqualified because the grip on his putter did not conform to USGA standards. Smith’s putter has two grips that have a flat side near the bottom of each. USGA rules require that both grips be round.

“It’s gratifying, very satisfying, but I have mixed emotions because of what Taylor did,� Woods said of the victory. “I’ve never heard of anything like this.�

Woods shot a six-under-par 66 to finish at 267, one shot better than Payne Stewart. The victory easily gave Woods enough money to play in the $3 million Tour Championship, which begins Thursday in Tulsa, Okla.

“I’ve managed my game really well,� Woods said. “I’m getting myself in position. I haven’t really played my best yet.�

His 66 on Sunday was the 21st time he has shot in the 60s in 27 rounds as a professional. He has finished in the top five in five consecutive tournaments--the first to do it since Curtis Strange in 1982.

The $216,000 for winning Sunday gave him $734,794 in only seven events and put him No. 23 on the money list. He could eclipse $1 million by finishing first or second at the Tour Championship, which involves only the top 30 on the money list.

“All the accolades need to go to Tiger,� Stewart said. “It’s the first time I’ve played with him. He’s the shot in the arm the Tour needs. He’s going to be out here a long time, and y’all are going to be writing about him for a long time.�

Smith was at the ninth hole and 18 under, two strokes behind Woods, when he was notified of the illegal putter.

Rule 4-1c says: “A putter may have more than one grip, provided each is circular in cross-section and the axis of each coincides with the axis of the shaft.�

Smith’s playing partner, Lennie Clements, notified tour officials of the possible infraction, and later said he had the same problem with a putter once at an L.A. Open. But he discovered the infraction during the Wednesday pro-am.

“He did the right thing,� Smith said. “He’s got to protect the field. It was pretty gutsy of him.�

Smith, a 29-year-old rookie looking for his first victory, asked to play under appeal.

The technical director for the USGA, who is in charge of equipment specifications, was contacted in Japan and upheld the disqualification.

Woods woke up feeling sick, so miserable that he said he would have stayed home from school if he was still at Stanford. He managed to overcome allergies, a headache, dehydration and Stewart.

They started the round at 15 under, one back of Smith and three others.

Woods hit his first drive into a fairway bunker, directly in front of a 20-foot tree. Woods hit a draw through a chute of trees into a greenside bunker, then saved par with a 15-foot putt.

“That was the biggest putt all day,� Woods said. “If I miss the putt on No. 1, I was two back and there were a lot of birdies to be made.�

Stewart hit every green in regulation but couldn’t seem to make a putt. Woods had three three-putts, including one from 50 feet on No. 9 that dropped him to 19 under and tied him with Stewart.

Woods made a 12-foot birdie putt on the par-five 10th hole, then gave it back with a three-putt from 25 feet. He took the lead for good on the par-three 12th with a nine-iron from 159 yards that stopped 18 inches from the hole.

Stewart knew he couldn’t keep up with Woods’ length and played a smart round, hitting the fairways in the right spots and leaving himself good chances for birdies.

He simply couldn’t will them into the cup. Stewart had only two putts longer than 15 feet, but made only five of the short ones.

Woods nearly let the tournament get away. His 10-foot birdie putt on No. 17 ran five feet past the hole, and he missed it coming back to reduce his lead to one.

With the gallery five deep on No. 18 and some people sticking their heads through the mesh from under the bleachers, Woods left his 25-foot birdie putt about 18 inches short, then had to wait as Stewart missed his birdie chance.

“He didn’t hit many bad shots, and neither did I,� Stewart said. “Everything I’ve heard about how mature he is was evident today. He’s going to have his chance to win a lot of tournaments.�

Woods earned 75 Ryder Cup points with the victory, and is 14th in the Ryder Cup standings. The top 10 qualify automatically for the 1997 team, plus there are two captain picks.

Smith finished 102nd on the money list to secure his 1997 playing card, but missed a possible $216,000 for a victory or $129,600 for second place.

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Sudden Impact

Tiger Woods as a professional:

* Events: 7

* Victories: 2

* Top-five finishes: 5

* Earnings: $734,794

* Tour ranking: 23rd

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Tiger Tracks

TIGER WOODS AS A PRO

GREATER MILWAUKEE OPEN

Aug. 29-Sept. 1

* Finish: Tied for 60th

* Scores: 67-69-73-68--277

* Earnings: $2,544

BELL CANADIAN OPEN

Oakville, Ontario--Sept. 5-8

* Finish: 11th

* Scores: 70-70-68--208

(Saturday rained out)

* Earnings: $37,500

QUAD CITY CLASSIC

Coal Valley, Ill. Sept. 12-15

* Finish: Tied for Fifth

* Scores: 69-64-67-72--272

* Earnings: $42,150

BC OPEN

Endicott, N.Y.. Sept. 19-22

* Finish: Tied for Third

* Scores: 68-66-66--200

(Fourth round rained out)

* Earnings: $58,000

LAS VEGAS INVITATIONAL

Oct. 3-6

* Finish: First

* Scores: 70-63-68-6-64--332

(Defeated Davis Love III on first

playoff hole)

* Earnings: $297,000

TEXAS OPEN

San Antonio, Oct. 10-13

* Finish: Third

* Scores: 69-68-73-67--277

* Earnings: $81,000

DISNEY CLASSIC

Lake Buena Vista, Fla. Oct. 17-20

* Finish: First

* Scores: 69-63-69-66--267

* Earnings: $216,000

PGA MONEY LEADERS

(Top 30 Qualify for Tour Championship)

1. Phil Mickelson: 1,620,999

2. Mark Brooks: 1,379,896

3. Tom Lehman: 1,230,159

4. Mark O’Meara: 1,196,949

5. Steve Stricker: 1,176,739

6. Davis Love III: 1,137,939

7. Fred Couples: 1,128,694

8. Scott Hoch: ,980,764

9. David Duval: 913,479

10. Greg Norman: 891,237

11. Nick Faldo: 889,821

12. Justin Leonard: 841,140

13. Tommy Tollee: 819,989

14. Ernie Els: 804,944

15. Corey Pavin: 795,520

16. Kenny Perry: 781,079

17. Vijay Singh: 767,540

18. Michael Bradley: 766,825

19. Jeff Maggert: 755,455

20. Steve Jones: 751,844

21. John Cook: 750,260

22. Fred Funk: 744,734

23. Tiger Woods: 734,794

24. Brad Faxon: 731,050

25. Loren Roberts: 725,231

26. Jim Furyk: 675,350

27. Tom Watson: 659,238

28. Mark Calcavecchia: 565,251

29. Jeff Sluman: 562,528

30. Duffy Waldorf: 553,982

PGA MONEY LEADERS SINCE WOODS JOINED TOUR

1. Tiger Woods: 734,794

2. Dudley Hart: 341,570

3. Fred Funk: 313,549

4. David Ogrin: 295,871

5. Loren Roberts: 282,163

6. Michael Bradley: 247,221

7. Davis Love III: 244,220

8. Andrew Magee: 221,200

9. Ed Fiori: 220,634

10. David Duval: 181,630