There are very few people on earth who have watched Tiger Woods in his prime on a major championship Sunday and come out on top.
YE Yang is the only player to beat Tiger when he took the lead in a major championship on Sunday, but a few others have stopped a hard-charging Woods with a major title on the line. Rich Beem beat Woods by one stroke at the 2002 PGA Championship. Angel Cabrera did the same at the 2007 US Open. And Michael Campbell beat Woods by two at the US Open at Pinehurst No. 2 in 2005 to win his only major championship.
That Sunday at Pinehurst started with Retief Goosen with a three-shot lead over Jason Gore and Olin Browne. Campbell was four shots off the pace and Woods six behind. But Goosen dropped six shots in his first nine holes en route to a final round of 81. That opened the door for the chasers, and it was Campbell and Woods who jockeyed for the title on the back nine. Campbell held the lead as he made the turn to number 10, while Woods played a few groups ahead.
When Campbell reached the 10th tee, Woods’ group was waiting for a ruling. It was there, during this long wait, that Campbell had a thought that would allow him to hold off Tiger Woods, like his one-under 69, and win by two.
“There was a time when I was standing on the 10th tee,” Campbell told GOLF’s Josh Sens during a round at Punta Mita. “I have a one-shot lead into the back nine of a major championship against the best, Tiger. He’s playing for me. I’ll never forget this. His playing partner had a saying: He hit the ball left of the tee on a par 5. So I’m on the 10th tee for about 20 minutes. That’s a long time. One phrase came to mind. No one taught me this. ‘Look at this as an opportunity, not a threat.’
“I thought, yeah, let’s have fun with this. If you look at the coverage, I’m just having fun. I’m just a kid and just enjoying the moment.”
Campbell, who entered the US Open field via sectional qualifying in England, made a clutch birdie putt on the par-3 17th hole to finally bring Woods within arm’s length. He bogeyed the final hole, but it didn’t matter as his place in US Open history was already secured.
You can watch Campbell’s conversation with Sens in the video above or the full Punta Mita video here.
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