No one will ever confuse Steve Stricker and Tiger Woods.
The former is nearly a decade older, blond-haired, exceedingly modest and accessible. He cries when he wins and is still with the same woman — his wife, Nicki — who caddied for him when he won his first PGA Tour event 15 years ago at Avenel.
But on Sunday in the John Deere Classic, Stricker made like Woods, winning with Tiger’s flair.
From a downhill, sidehill lie in a fairway bunker on a 72nd hole, Stricker hooked a 6-iron around a tree and over water to the back of the green. Then from the fringe, he rolled in a 30-foot putt to win by one shot.
With two brilliant strokes, Stricker had the signature victory of his 11 on tour. And he responded with a rare show of pizzazz, slapping hands with fans after his bunker shot and thrusting his arms upward in celebration of his putt.
Tiger-like indeed. It was the third straight year Stricker won the Deere. The last man to accomplish the feat on tour was Woods in the Bridgestone (2005-07).
On Sunday night, Stricker was one of 20-plus players who boarded “Air Deere,” the annual charter flight that carries players from the Quad Cities to the British Isles. In the British Open at quirky Royal St. George’s, Stricker will try to win his first major championship.
A win by an American would break the stranglehold of the Irish on major championships not attended by Woods. In 2008 Padraig Harrington won both majors Woods missed. In this year’s U.S. Open, Rory McIlroy prevailed.
– Kevin Dunleavy
