buick invitational, round one

i had the opportunity to go and watch the Buick invitational the other day at torrey pines, through Berkshire Hathaway. i got their at about 8am amid an array of dark clouds. i wandered in from the muddy parking lot and followed the straggling crowds their mecca. after dodging the golf carts that were buzzing around for final preparations for the day and making my way through the maze of tents and mud puddles i found myself at the first tee box on the south course. i watched the first group of 3 tee off and make their way down the par 4 to the putting green. i then noticed the next group of 3 had one vijay singh in it so i knew that i was in the right place. those three hit their balls and then someone next to me mentioned that tiger was up next. i walked behind the stands and behind the tee box and saw more security and police officers. everyone jockeying for position as tiger made his way to the start. a few moments later he came around the corner with jim furyk. i realized then that a golf tournament was not like sitting in the nose bleed section of a baseball stadium where there was a fence between you and the player, as well as 2 levels and 30 rows of seats but you could get as close as you wanted to.

it seemed that is what everyone was there for, to see him. i would imagine on the north course it was the same for phil mickelson, everyone following him around from hole to hole. on the second hole i noticed eldrick wood's wife in the pack of onlookers moving down the 1st green. after they got done with the hole she went from the putting green to the next putting green and skipped the tee. i thought that she would have followed his every shot but that was it. not to try to follow him step for step but jump ahead and get a good spot on the rope for a future shot. that is when the dark grey clouds that were visible on the first hole came through and rained for the next two holes. it came down but it did not slow the play on the course.

on the 5th hole i was standing down the left side of the fairway about 20 feet from a tree. woods shot landed in the heavy rough, on a small hill right underneath a tree. the marshal backed us up but tiger was right in front of us when he punched it out. (there is a picture his shot and i am right to the side of the marshal, you can see my pant leg and that is about it in this picture.)
a few more holes with all of the rest of the lemmings and i was ready to sit down in the sky box on the 16th. after a while the Shepard and his flock made it around to the 16th hole. nice to be able to sit there and watch him 4 stroke the par 3. one thing that frustrated me was the i could not bring in my camera. so picturesque up there on the hills overlooking the pacific, all of the clouds made it even better than just a normal sunny day. the throngs of people, green grass and the blue skies.
so in the end i got to see tigers first shot of 2008 and the beginning of his win there are torrey pines.