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Showdown World’s two hottest players to meet in WGC Match Play
Posted: Monday February 14, 2000 05:40 PM
NEW YORK (AP) -- Tiger Woods, No. 1 in the world, will have to play Michael Campbell of New Zealand, one of the hottest players in the world, next week in the first round of the Match Play Championship. Campbell has won three of his last four tournaments and is one of only two players to beat Woods since August. The field for the $5 million World Golf Championship, which starts Feb. 23 at La Costa Spa and Resort in Carlsbad, California, was determined Monday with the release of the latest world rankings. The top 64 players are in a single-elimination tournament that takes place over five days with 18-hole matches and a 36-hole final.
Campbell qualified for Match Play by winning the Australian Masters on Sunday, which moved him from No. 67 to No. 65 in the rankings. The top 65 made it because Jumbo Ozaki (No. 36) decided not to play for the second year in a row. Defending champion Jeff Maggert, who won the inaugural WGC event with a chip-in for birdie at the 38th hole, is ranked No. 20 and will meet Bob Tway in the first round. No. 2 David Duval meets Argentina's Angel Cabrera, No. 3 Colin Montgomerie faces Dennis Paulson and No. 4 Davis Love III will oppose Olin Browne. A year ago, five of the top 10 seeds were eliminated in the first round, and all but Woods were gone by the second round. Maggert defeated Woods in the quarterfinals. Woods will have a marquee matchup in the first round for the second straight year. He played Nick Faldo last year and won 4 and 3. While Woods' six-tournament PGA Tour winning streak was stopped Sunday by Phil Mickelson, he also failed to win one other tournament since August -- the Johnnie Walker Classic in Taiwan in November, won by Campbell. Campbell followed with victories in the New Zealand Open and the Heineken Classic. The Australian Masters victory made him the first player since Greg Norman in 1988 to win four times on the Australasian circuit. Campbell first gained notoriety by nearly winning the British Open at St. Andrews in 1995, taking the 54-hole lead before finishing in a tie for third. He injured a wrist a year later. "The last few months have been incredible," Campbell said Sunday. "There has been a huge turnaround in my life and my golf. I feel at ease with golf. I feel like I am ready to take on the best in the world." That's what he gets with Woods, who will be a huge favorite to win the $1 million prize in the Match Ply Championship, which is sponsored by Andersen Consulting. Other first-round matchups include Norman against Mark O'Meara and Ernie Els against Bernhard Langer. The field features players from 18 countries.
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