The magic number is 18 at the Accenture Match Play Championship. Playing an 18-hole match has been the great equalizer in this event. It’s resulted in the top seed winning only 58 percent of the time during the opening round.
The 64-player field will have to wait an extra day to begin play at the La Costa Resort and Spa in Carlsbad, Calif. Wet conditions postponed Wednesday’s first round to Thursday.
Count on the unexpected when play does begin.
The 18-hole format has led to unlikely winners such as Jeff Maggert, Steve Stricker, and Kevin Sutherland.
If the tour wanted to make the event more predictable, it would stage 36-hole matches. The best player usually prevails when the match is longer. Last year, Davis Love III led after the opening 18 holes of the finals, but Tiger Woods rallied on the second 18 to win the title.
The finals are the only match that will go 36 this week. Otherwise, it’s 18 and a roll of the dice.
“When you play 18, the 64th guy can beat the No. 1 guy,” said ABC analyst Nick Faldo, one of the great Ryder Cup players of all time. “Thirty-six holes is a great test. You’ve got high points, low points, and there’s stamina involved. With 18 holes, you just blitz it. Anything can happen.”
The favorite
For the first time ever, Woods comes into Match Play as the No. 2 seed. It doesn’t matter. With two straight titles, he remains the player to beat.
He holds a 20-3 record in this competition. Even when he isn’t on his game, as was the case last year, he still finds a way to win.
The favorite flops
Woods is the only player ranked in the top 10 to win a match play title. No. 1 Vijay Singh and No. 4 Retief Goosen never have made it past the second round. No. 3 Phil Mickelson never has advanced past the quarters.
Matching up
Besides Woods, Darren Clarke is perhaps the best player in this format. He beat Woods to win the 1999 title, reached the quarters in 2003, and was third last year. David Toms merits a strong look. He was a quarterfinalist in 2002 and lost in the finals to Woods in 2003.
The mindset
Faldo played in 11 Ryder Cups for Europe and knows a few things about match play.
“You have to be as aggressive as you can be,” he said. “If you’re in the fairway, you think, `I’ve got to hole this.’ If you miss the green, then you’ve got to hole the next shot. If you focus on doing that all day, it’s a great way to play golf.”
