Tiger Woods (AFP)
Tim Clark was the unlikely Tiger-tamer handing superstar Tiger Woods his worst-ever defeat in the WGC Accenture Match Play Championship.
Clark shrugged off the glare of publicity that accompanied Woods's return to action after an eight-month absence and downed the superstar 4 and 2 in the second round of the elite event.
Clark, 33, avenged a second-round loss to Woods two years ago, but it's hard to associate revenge with the unassuming South African.
Clark, the highest-ranked player in US PGA Tour earnings never to have won on the tour, said he learned a few things in his 2007 loss to Woods about how to deal with the mass of fans and media that follow him and how to deal with Woods's own intimidating aura.
"I knew what to expect," he said of the throngs that follow Woods. "I knew how I reacted to it then and I knew a few things I had to differently. I just tried to calm myself down.
"I knew if I came out and played good, I'd always have a chance.
"I think a lot of guys playing with Tiger probably try to hard or think about the fact that they're playing with him.
"It's really just a case of realizing that it's another round of golf. All you can do is hit your shots and move on."
Clark did that to perfection on Thursday. His round included six birdies with no bogeys.
But even when he moved to 3-up through 13, Clark said he expected Woods to bounce back.
"You fully expect him to do something," Clark said, and that expectation was met when Woods holed a bunker shot to win the 14th.
But Clark kept his head, capitalized on a wild Woods tee shot at 15, then punctuated his round with a birdie to close out the match.
"Tim did what he needed to do today," Woods said. "He needed to go out there and hit a bunch of fairways and greens and make some putts.
"He made a bunch of birdies today and I believe he didn't make a bogey all day. So that's what you have to do in match play, put the pressure on your opponent."
Clark admitted the win was "obviously a massive victory for me.
"He doesn't get beaten very often and to go out in that sort of atmosphere, I mean it really is a different experience."
But Clark wasn't one to get carried away by the enormity of his accomplishment.
"At the end of the day," he said, "it still is just the second round.
"I have yet to win on tour so hopefully that's going to happen for me one day, and that will be pretty big."
© 2009 AFP/sid
