LA JOLLA, Calif. — It’s clear that Tiger Woods is still in pain in his first tournament following April surgery on his left knee. But following Sunday’s fourth round of the U.S. Open, it was equally apparent that the world’s No. 1 player wasn’t very interested in talking about it.
Asked at one point if the pain was a temporary byproduct or long term, Woods merely said, “It’s different.” Pressed further, he was asked if he knows what the difference is.
“I know,” Woods said, ending the discussion.
Later, while not acknowledging that it was a direct result of his injury, Woods did admit that he’s been forced to work harder in attempting to gain his 14th major championship than he has for any of his previous ones.
Change in fortune.
When Brandt Jobe began his final round with birdies on the opening two holes, he not only climbed into the top 10 on the leaderboard, he looked to be a factor in the day’s ultimate outcome. That didn’t happen; Jobe bogeyed the fourth hole and double bogeyed the sixth. After bogeys on No. 10 and No. 11, the day threatened to become a total disaster. However, the former Kent Denver star got two birdies on the back nine and finished at 2-over-par 73. His final total of 6-over 290 was good enough for a tie for 18th place and his best finish of the season.
“I was about two shots away from a top-10,” Jobe said following his round.
While a number of players, most notably Phil Mickelson, complained about the 614-yard, par-5 13th hole, Jobe saved his enmity for the sixth. Normally a par-5 for the PGA Tour’s Buick Invitational, it’s been played at the Open as a 515-yard par-4.
“I’m just stating my opinion here, but you can’t turn that hole from a par-5 to a par-4,” Jobe said. “There’s a tree that’s 60 feet tall right in the middle of the fairway; if you hit a draw, if you hit a fade, if you hit it straight, you have to try to hit over the top of it.
“You can’t have a tree right in the center of the driving area and call it a good hole.”
Frustration aside, Jobe said there were still a number of positives to be carried away from Torrey Pines into this week’s tour stop in Hartford, Conn.
“I’ve got to keep playing because I’m getting close,” said Jobe, who has battled injuries to his left hand and wrist the last two years. “I’m headed in the right direction. Compared to where I was (at his lowest point), this week was a heyday.”
