MARANA, Ariz. — Tiger Woods barely broke a sweat while Steve Stricker went into overtime for the second straight day. They had only one thing in common Thursday in the Accenture Match Play Championship, which ultimately was all that mattered.
Both are still playing.
One day after a stunning comeback to survive the opening round, Woods built a quick lead against Arron Oberholser and never gave him much hope in a 3-and-2 victory.
The thrills belonged to Stricker, who made a 10-foot birdie putt on the 19th hole to extend the match, then beat Presidents Cup teammate Hunter Mahan with a birdie putt just inside 50 feet. It was the second straight day Stricker won in 20 holes.
“I’m getting my money’s worth out of this event,” Stricker said.
It was the second straight year Phil Mickelson was given a long weekend off. Fresh off a victory at Riviera, he couldn’t make enough birdies to keep up with Stuart Appleby.
Appleby’s ninth birdie came on the 17th hole, and it was enough to send Mickelson packing with a 2-and-1 loss.
“It was a good match, but unfortunately, I just didn’t shoot low enough,” said Mickelson, who has never made it past the quarterfinals in this tournament. “I wanted a chance on 18, but unfortunately, I didn’t get it.”
David Toms didn’t have any chance at all. His back flared up late in his first-round victory over Masters champion Zach Johnson, and the pain was such that he had to withdraw before facing Aaron Baddeley, giving the Australian a day off. Next up for Baddeley is a third-round date with Woods.
Footnotes.
Showing no signs of the wrist injuries that plagued her last year, Michelle Wie shot a 3-under-par 69 in her season debut at the Fields Open in Kapolei, Hawaii, finishing five strokes behind leader Jeong Jang.
• John Merrick holed a roughly 50-foot putt on his final shot for a 6-under 64 and one-stroke lead after the first round of the Mayakoba Golf Classic in Playa del Carmen, Mexico.
The Associated Press
