July 2, 2012
Ceci Ferrara
Sports Writer
Sports Insider
It was a crazy weekend in the Washington, DC area—to put it lightly. The storms that swept through the area on Friday night left downed trees and debris everywhere, including the fairways of the Congressional Country Club in Bethesda, Maryland.
The damage was so bad that on Saturday the tournament was closed to spectators and volunteers, giving the players what seemed like their own private course. Everything was back to normal on Sunday, with several spectators on hand (and many more tuning in) to witness Woods make history.
Shooting two-under-par 69, Woods walked off the course with a win, his third of the year and the 74th of his career. The victory pushed him past Jack Nicklaus on the all-time PGA wins list, second only to Sam Snead (82). Woods’ victory over second place winner Bo Van Pelt at the AT&T National is drawing speculation that he is due to win a major.
Woods has now won three times in seven starts, though both of his losses came during major championships (the Masters and U.S. Open). There are still two majors left in 2012: the British Open in two weeks and the PGA Championship later this summer. While he may not have won a major yet, he seemed content with his victory. Afterwards Woods rebuffed his doubters saying, “I remember there was a time when people were saying I could never win again. That was, I think, what, six months ago? Well, here we are.”
Even though he moved up the list on all-time wins, his standing as No. 4 golfer in the world did not budge. Woods remains behind Luke Donald, Lee Westwood and Rory McIlory. However, it’s safe to say, if Woods can win the British Open, the PGA Championship, or both, his status will be upgraded.
Final Leaderboard
Tiger Woods 276 (-8)
Bo Van Pelt 278 (-6)
Adam Scott 279 (-5)
Robert Garrigus 280 (-4)
Jhonattan Vegas 280 (-4)
Seung-Yul Noh 280 (-4)
Billy Hurley III 280 (-4)
Nationals
Nats fans had three reasons to cheer last Friday when Major League Baseball announced the National League roster for this year’s MLB All Star Game. Washington will be sending three players to Kauffman Stadium for the All-Star Game on July 10, the most in franchise history. Pitchers Stephen Strasburg and Gio Gonzalez, along with shortstop Ian Desmond, will travel to Kansas City to represent the home team.
It will be the first All-Star Game for Strasburg and Desmond, and the second consecutive one for Gonzalez, who appeared last year as an Oakland Athletic. With a first-place standing, the Nats and their star players seem to finally be getting some national recognition.
Gonzalez is 11-3 with a 2.78 ERA, while Strasburg has an impressive 9-3 record, 2.81 ERA and leads the league with 122-strikeouts. Desmond meanwhile is batting .276 with 13 home runs and 43 RBIs.
What about rookie phenom and fan favorite Bryce Harper? He still might have a chance yet. It was announced that he is one of five possible selections for the National League’s online “Final Vote”, along with Chipper Jones, Michael Bourn, David Freese and Aaron Hill. Fan votes will decide which one of them will be the final player on the National League roster at the All-Star Game on July 10. Fans can vote online at MLB.com.
