Nick Price was on the verge of dominating golf a dozen years ago when he first saw Charles Howell III, a skinny 10-year-old from Augusta, Georgia, pounding golf balls as though nothing else in life mattered.
Price certainly knew what to expect yesterday in the Nissan Open.
"He was a skinny little kid who hit more balls than I've ever seen a 10-year-old hit," Price said. "And he hasn't changed. He has a lot of game."
PHOTO: AP
That was on display at Riviera Country Club, when Howell played all the right shots and blasted the ball off the tee on his way to a 6-under 65.
He didn't pay attention to any scoreboards. He didn't realize that Fred Funk went into a free fall, playing a four-hole stretch in 5-over par, or that defending champion Len Mattiace surged back into contention with an eagle on No. 11.
Tiger Woods was already done for the day, nearly whiffing on a shot out of the deep rough on No. 7 for a double bogey, but still had a 68 that kept him in the hunt.
Howell was worried about his own game, his own score. Imagine his surprise when he climbed up the hill toward the 18th green and saw the large white scoreboard with the lowest score next to his name.
"I was a bit surprised," said Howell, who was at 8-under 134.
Price had a few shocks of his own. He came up short on the seventh hole and chipped in for birdie from 20m. For an encore, he missed the 18th green well to the right, then chipped in for another birdie from 30m.
"It came out perfectly," Price said. "I pitched on the green and it released on up and went in like a 2-foot putt."
That gave him a 67 for 7-under 137, one stroke behind the skinny little kid from Georgia and in the last group along with Mattiace.
PGA champion Rich Beem had a bogey-free 65 and was alone in fourth at 138, while David Duval (70) and Funk (74) were in the large group at 139.
Duval must have been equally surprised to be so close to the lead. He was in the trees, in the rough, behind a picket fence and generally all over the map. Thanks to a chip-in for par and an 80-foot birdie putt from the fringe on No. 4, he was still in contention.
``Just silly things that hold a round together,'' Duval said. ``What could have been a poor day turned into a very acceptable day.''
Woods knows that feeling in reverse.
He was headed toward the lead, a flawless day when he controlled his ball flight beautifully and never came close to a bogey. Then came the drive on No. 7 that landed in shin-high grass, the ball suspended by the thick rough and barely visible.
With a mighty swing, he advanced it about 6 inches. With another swing, it went sideways into a bunker, leading to a double bogey.
``One bad swing cost me a couple of shots,'' said Woods, who was at 2-under 140. ``Overall, I'm pleased with the way I played today -- real solid.''
The Nissan Open is the only tournament Woods has played at least five times without winning, and it means even more because he grew up nearby in Cypress.
Still, the sentimental favorite might be Price.
A three-time major champion, Price, 46, knows his days are numbered in an era of flat bellies who hit the ball a mile. At the start of the year, he predicted his only realistic chances would come on classic courses that require more than sheer power.
And yes, Riviera came to mind.
Even so, to be in the final group at Riviera on the weekend is a little unusual.
``I've never won on the West Coast,'' Price said. ``And I've never won on poa annua greens. So, this is a good opportunity for me to kill two birds with one stone.''
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