$5 Million Man and Counting

DUBLIN, Ohio —  Tiger Woods grew up in California and has grown rich in Ohio.

He has won the last six tournaments he has played in the state, including three consecutive Memorial tournaments and three consecutive World Golf Championships at Firestone.

How dominant is Woods in the Buckeye State? When he won the NEC Invitational last August, he had twice as many victories in Ohio as the Cleveland Browns since their return to the NFL.

He has earned nearly $5 million within the boundaries of the state, $1 million more than Arnold Palmer and Gary Player won in their careers--combined.

In the 10 tournaments Woods has played as a professional in Ohio, his average paycheck has been $496,385. He has made $124,000 for every round he has played, $1,839 for every stroke at Muirfield Village and Firestone.

Next up is the Memorial at Muirfield Village Golf Club, where Woods will try to become the first player to win the same tournament in four consecutive years since Walter Hagen won the PGA Championship from 1924-27.

Gene Sarazen is the only other player to win the same tournament four times in a row, the Miami Open in 1926 and from 1928-30.

“That would be nice, to be able to put myself in elite company like that,” Woods said. “Those are obviously two of the biggest names that have ever played the game, and hopefully I can do the same.”

Ten years ago, Woods was 16 when he made the cut and advanced to the second round of the U.S. Amateur at Muirfield before losing in match play.

He returned with his Stanford teammates for the 1995 NCAA Championships at Ohio State’s Scarlet Course. Woods tied for fifth in the medalist race, with Stanford losing the team title in a playoff.

He made the cut and had two top-10 finishes in his first four pro events in Ohio. Since then, he has been unbeatable.

“For some reason, I’ve played well. I can’t explain why, because previously before that, I didn’t really play very good here,” Woods said after his most recent victory in the state, the NEC Invitational at Firestone Country Club in Akron. “And then all of a sudden it just turned around.”

Woods’ tournament wins have come in all varieties. He defended his title in the 2000 NEC by 11 shots, then last year won the same event in a seven-hole playoff with Jim Furyk.

His Memorial wins, piled up on the Muirfield Village course designed and built by his boyhood idol, Jack Nicklaus, have come by two, five and seven shots.

After Woods won last year’s tournament in a runaway, Paul Azinger, who tied for second, actually apologized to him.

Woods has won from in front and come from behind. No matter the situation through 18 holes, two rounds or with nine holes to play, it is always Woods who ends up in the winner’s circle.

“Since I’ve been playing the sport, I’ve never found anybody that’s dominated anything more,” Nicklaus said.

Maybe it’s not such a coincidence that Woods has strung together so many wins in the state, since both Muirfield and Firestone seem to fit his game. Then again, with 31 wins in his five years on the PGA Tour, a lot of courses seem to fit that description.

Both courses are old-school layouts. Both are exceedingly long--in excess of 7,100 yards--but have relatively wide, forgiving landing areas and large greens.

Even though Woods grew up in Southern California, he enjoys the weather in the Midwest. He encounters heavy rains at Muirfield every year and has battled everything from cold winds and driving rain to high-humidity days in the 90s during his march through Ohio.

It took two years on each course for Woods to discover how best to attack Muirfield and Firestone.

“Anytime you’ve won on the golf course and you go back, you’re always going to feel a little bit more comfortable,” Woods said. “That’s a very warming feeling, especially coming down the stretch in the tournament.”

He calls Muirfield one of his favorite places to play.

“I’ve always loved the layout,” he said. “I’ve always felt that it suited my game. I didn’t show that early, but I’ve learned how to play the golf course.”

That same comfort zone applies at Firestone, although Woods will have to go for his fourth consecutive NEC Invitational victory on a new track. It is moving for one year to Sahalee Country Club outside Seattle, where Woods tied for 10th in the ’98 PGA Championship.

“I’m going to miss not going to Firestone,” Woods said. “I’ve always loved that golf course because it’s so simple. It’s straightforward. All the trouble is right in front of you, and the golf course just says, ‘Come get me if you can.’

“You don’t find that a lot in modern courses. They try to trick things up.”

There have been no tricks about his play in Ohio. For the last three years, Woods has shown up, defeated world-class fields and walked away with a trophy and a large check.