Woods soars as Nicklaus bids farewell

PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. - On a day when Jack Nicklaus bid farewell, Tiger Woods had the final word.

After a long day of fog, sunshine and tears for a 60-year-old champion Friday in the U.S. Open, the siren sounded as darkness fell over Pebble Beach. Woods had the option of finishing out the 12th hole, and did so in style.

He rapped in a 30-foot putt, his fifth birdie of the round on rock-hard greens, to build a three-stroke lead over Miguel Angel Jimenez and take strong vibes into the conclusion of the second round on Saturday.

Not like he needs them.

Pebble Beach showed a nasty temper, with the fickle winds and concrete greens that made par a pleasure. Woods treated it the same way he did in February when he had a 64 to come from seven strokes behind on the last seven holes to win the National Pro-Am.

''What can you say? He's that good,'' Rocco Mediate said. ''If he falters a bit, he might let some guys back in it. If he doesn't, forget it.''

That's what they used to say about Nicklaus. Instead, Friday marked the passing of a generation - Nicklaus limping home in his record 44th U.S. Open, and most likely his last; Woods breezing along on a brutally tough day.

Nicklaus gave his adoring gallery one last thrill by lashing a 3-wood into a Pacific breeze and reaching the 545-yard 18th hole in two shots, something he hasn't tried in 20 years.

''It's been a great run of tournaments,'' Nicklaus said, his blue eyes glistening as he tried to hold back the tears.

Woods was standing on the practice green when he heard the roar, and thought someone had holed out from the fairway. Then he realized Nicklaus, the man whose records Woods might one day threaten, was finishing his round.

''It would have been nice seeing it, but I had more important things to take care of,'' Woods said.

He did just that.

After his first bogey of the championship, on the par-3 fifth hole that Nicklaus built two years ago, Woods ripped an iron from the rough on No. 6, the ball climbing over the ocean and a cypress tree and landing on the green 15 feet away for a two-putt birdie.

He birdied the 106-yard seventh hole with a 10-footer, and finished up his day with birdies on the 11th and 12th, putting him at 3 under for his round and 9 under for the tournament.

''I was just trying to get it close and get out of Dodge, and it went in,'' Woods said of the final putt.

He refused to look too far ahead, or compare it to his record 12-stroke victory in the 1997 Masters.

''There's a long way to go. We haven't even finished the second round yet,'' Woods said. ''This golf course is a lot more demanding than Augusta was.''

Jimenez was at 6 under through seven holes when play was suspended by darkness. Fifty-six players will return at 6:30 a.m. Saturday to complete the third round.

Nicklaus will not be there. His anticipated walk up the 18th fairway came two days early, and the finish was not what he had in mind - a three-putt for par and an 82, his worst score in 160 U.S. Open rounds dating to 1957.

Nicklaus walked off the green and hugged his teary-eyed wife, Barbara, and three of his five children.

Pebble Beach made others break down Friday, but for a different reason.

The sea breeze that finally shooed away the fog also brought out the beast in Pebble Beach, especially greens that turned into crusty parcels on concrete with a hazy yellow sheen.

''You could hear the greens yelling, 'I'm thirsty!''' said Lee Janzen, who had at 73 for a 2-over 144 total.

Greg Norman went eight straight holes with a bogey or worse for an 82, his worst U.S. Open ever. He will miss the cut for the third straight time.

So will Davis Love III (75-79), for just the third time in his career.

None of this seem to faze Woods.

''I just sit back and stand in awe of the kid,'' said hometown hero Bobby Clampett, who started the day three strokes back and walked off the course 10 strokes back. ''Any time you think he can't do something, he proves you wrong.''

All corners of the globe were trying to catch him.

Jimenez, the Spaniard whom Woods beat in a playoff at Valderrama in November, made par on the first five holes and picked up his lone birdie on the par-5 sixth hole.

''If my game stays the way it is, I'm not afraid of anything,'' Jimenez said.

Angel Cabrera of Argentina and Thomas Bjorn of Denmark were at 2 under.

No one else could made a move.

Despite fog that hugged the coastline overnight and well into the morning, the greens had virtually no moisture and the field had almost no chance. By late afternoon, only three players had managed to break par.

The best score posted was by Daley - that's Joe.

He followed up an 83 - the same score as John Daly, who immediately left town - with a 2-under 69, although he still missed the cut. Nine other players still on the course were also under par.

''I felt like I was playing with a marble out on the pool table,'' Nicklaus said. ''If you're not quite on your game, it eats you alive every time.''

Kirk Triplett made a brief run, but he landed on the beach below the 10th hole and into the shin-deep rough on the 13th hole, both times making bogey. A brilliant start still led to a 71, and he was the early clubhouse leader after 36 holes at 1-under 141.

Three-time Masters and British Open champion Nick Faldo stubbornly tried to hang around the lead until he missed too many greens and failed to hole enough putts. He finished with a 74 for 1-over 143.

Nicklaus saved his best for last, soaking in the beauty of Pebble Beach one last time. He figured it had been 20 years since he tried to reach the 18th green in two, but turned to his oldest son Jackie, his caddie, and said, ''Why not?''

He ripped his drive past the pine tree in the middle and hit a 3-wood for all it was worth. The ball hopped onto the front of the green, and the gallery rose to their feet and let out a roar.

''It's difficult coming up the last fairway, knowing it will probably be the last time you're going to come up the U.S. Open fairway,'' Nicklaus said. ''It's been a big part of my life.''

Back in the fairway, Tom Watson stopped and applauded as Nicklaus was on the green.

For most of the day, Woods' biggest battle was with boredom. Nearly 30 hours passed between his final putt for birdie on Thursday and his first tee shot Friday afternoon, thanks to the heavy fog that suspended play in the first round.

Seventy-five players had to return at 6:45 a.m., then waiting another 90 minutes for the fog to finally lift. Among them was Ted Tryba, who couldn't believe what he saw - or felt - when he got back on the course.

''We had moisture on the green last night with the fog and everything, but they're twice as firm,'' Ted Tryba said. ''Go figure.''

Masters champion Vijay Singh had a 73 and was still in the picture at 1-over 143. No one since Faldo in 1990 has finished in the top 10 in a U.S. Open after winning the green jacket.

Fred Couples (75) bogeyed two of the last three holes to finish at 145, along with Watson.

Another senior tour star, Hale Irwin, capped off a 68 in the morning but limped home with a 78 and was at 146. Another stroke back was Colin Montgomerie (74) and two-time Open champion Ernie Els (73). Their chances were fading as Woods finished each hole, usually with no worse than par.

The 24-year-old, playing his 100th professional tournament in the 100th U.S. Open, had a chance to succumb to the torturous conditions - or take a huge step toward become the first wire-to-wire U.S. Open champion since the late Payne Stewart at Hazeltine in 1991.