Golf: Woods just too hot for Campbell

By TERRY MADDAFORD

The Tiger burned too brightly for Michael Campbell and the rest as he won his 10th golf tournament of the year in Thailand yesterday.

Tiger Woods won his second Johnnie Walker Classic and $US190,729 ($458,700) with a record-breaking 263 - 25 under par at Bangkok's Alpine Golf and Sports Club. It was five shots better than the tournament record and four shots better than his 2000 best, the 21-under he fired in winning at Firestone earlier in the year.

Campbell's hopes of a second consecutive victory in the tournament - the first on the 2001 European and Australasian tours - evaporated in the middle of his round.

In the end, he held on for third - seven shots behind Woods with Geoff Ogilvy charging into second with a 64 and a 266 total.

Fresh from his course-record 63 in the third round after he had bogeyed the first hole but fired 10 birdies on the remaining holes to equal his best-ever round, Campbell had a rocky run yesterday.

Woods and Campbell parred the first hole before Campbell grabbed a birdie on the second to close the overnight deficit to two shots. He gave it back with a bogey four on the third only to grab a second birdie on the fourth.

There was no change over the next five holes as they went stroke for stroke, even sharing birdies on the par five fifth and seventh holes - the pace too hot for Australian Rodney Pampling.

As Pampling fell away, fellow Australian Ogilvy slipped clear to repeat his second-place finish of a year earlier.

Campbell, on in a regulation two, and Woods, over the back of the eighth green but chipping close, shared pars on the eighth.

The par-four ninth was pivotal.

While Woods was comfortably on for two and holed his birdie putt, Campbell was short of the green with his second and then watched in dismay as his chip from the Bermuda grass rough skewed sideways. His par putt just missed and he settled for bogey - and a two-shot swing.

Campbell did his best to get one back on the 10th but fell further away.

With Woods safely on in two, Campbell, with the shorter approach, all but holed his second but failed to sink his putt whereas Woods sunk his for another birdie and a five-shot lead.

Campbell fell away as Ogilvy eased away but without any hope of catching a rampant Woods, conservative off the tee and who had last dropped a shot at the sixth in the second round.

Campbell continued his brave defence to finish third and collect $US71,639.

New Zealanders Michael Long (one over) and Greg Turner (two over) finished in ties for 52nd and 58th respectively.