Tiger Woods says 'I'm only human' after mystery crash

and claims his wife was not to blame

By NICK ALLEN in Los Angeles & PAUL THOMPSON in Orlando
Tiger Woods has issued a statement saying he was "human and not perfect" following his bizarre late night car crash in which he hit a fire hydrant and a tree.
In his first public comment since the incident in the early hours of Friday, the golfer said his wife Elin Nordegren, 29, was not to blame.
He paid tribute to her for "courageously" helping him following the accident outside their home in Orlando, Florida.
Woods, 33, said: "I have some cuts, bruising and right now I'm pretty sore. This situation is my fault, and it's obviously embarrassing to my family and me. I'm human and I'm not perfect."
Woods has faced a string of claims that his wife confronted him over allegations about his private life in a tabloid newspaper and then chased him down the drive.
But Woods said there had been "many false, unfounded and malicious rumours." He said: "The only person responsible for the accident is me. My wife, Elin, acted courageously when she saw I was hurt and in trouble. She was the first person to help me. Any other assertion is absolutely false."
Woods said the accident was a "private matter" and he wanted to keep it that way.
But his decision not to go into further detail meant speculation continued to swirl about the crash.
Last night police made a third attempt to speak to Woods and his wife about the accident but the appointment was cancelled. The star has now hired a lawyer and will only talk to police investigating the crash in his presence. The interview is expected to take place on Monday.
Elin Nordegren, 29, originally told police she had used a golf club to break into the Cadillac Escalade to rescue the her husband after he fire hydrant and a tree.
But yesterday it emerged that a number of windows on the vehicle had been smashed and police are now trying to establish how it happened.
According to one report by the celebrity entertainment website TMZ, the player told a friend that his wife had "gone ghetto" on him, scratching his face hours before the accident.
The website said she had confronted Woods following allegations about his private life in a tabloid magazine and that when he drove off she chased after his car.
The accident came two days after the National Enquirer magazine published a story alleging that Woods had been seeing a New York nightclub hostess, and that they recently were together in Melbourne, where Woods competed in the Australian Masters.
The woman, Rachel Uchitel, has vehemently denied any romantic connection with Woods and hired a lawyer to counter the allegations.
Florida Highway Patrol spokesman Kim Montes said they wanted to speak to Woods and his wife.
She said: "We consider her a witness and she will be interviewed along with her husband."
Florida Highway Patrol released a recording of a 911 call by an unidentified neighbour.
The neighbor says: "I have someone down in front of my house. I heard it and came out to see. It's a car accident. They're laying on the ground." Asked if the person is unconscious, the neighbour replied "yes". He is then asked if the person is breathing the man replies: "I can't tell right now." In the background a woman can be heard screaming: "What happened?"
The man, who does not identify the unconscious man as Tiger Woods, replies: "We don't now what happened, we are finding it all out."
Officers went to Woods' home in the exclusive Isleworth development in Orlando on Friday but were told by his wife that he was sleeping.
They returned on Saturday and Sunday only to be told by the player's agent that both he and his wife were unavailable.
Woods does not have to make any statement to police, who under Florida law are only required to see his driving licence, insurance documents and car registration.
A Florida Highway Patrol spokesman said: "If Mr Woods chooses not to say anything we will just continue with our investigation. We want to give him every opportunity to tell us what happened.
"We are still investigating this as a traffic accident, but if we received other information then we can proceed in another direction."

Chris and Alexandra win Abu Dhabi Junior Championship titles

Chris Lloyd (The Kendleshire) caught the British boys champion Tom Lewis (Welwyn Garden) over the third and last round to win the Abu Dhabi Junior Championship boys' title, presented by the Daily Telegraph.
But Alexandra Peters (Notts Ladies), the overnight leader of the girls' section, maintained her position to win by five shots.
More words and all the scores available by switching over to our sister website, www.kirkwoodgolf.co.uk

Final European Tour Qualifying School

O'Hara's pain in Spain is still his putting ...

FROM THE SCOTSMAN WEBSITE
By Nick Rodger
Steven O'Hara's perennial problems with his putter continue in Spain but the Scot still hauled himself to the fringes of the top 10 during the second round of the European Tour's qualifying school final at a gusty PGA Golf de Catalunya near Girona in North-east Spain.
The 29-year-old from Motherwell harnessed the testing conditions on the Stadium course and carved out a two-under par 70 for a four-under 138 to share 12th place behind English duo Simon Khan and Charlie Ford, who lead the race for 30 tour cards on offer with 11-under 131s.
O'Hara, who lost his tour place after dropping to 151st on the money list, was one of the European circuit's most accurate golfers this past season, finishing fourth on the greens in regulation statistics. His putts per round figures made for dire reading, however, with the former Scottish Amateur champion finishing bottom of the rankings.
"I played some brilliant stuff today but as usual it was the same old story with the putting," said O'Hara after countering two dropped shots with a bag of four birdies. "That's been the problem all year and it can get frustrating. I had birdie chances at almost every hole and even missed a couple of putts from barely two feet. But the windy conditions made it tough and I was rewarded for my approach play."
Scott Drummond finished the day alongside O'Hara after a one-under 69 on the shorter Tour course but the 2004 PGA champion was left cursing a trio of late bogeys at 15, 16 and 17. Stephen Gallacher, the former Dunhill Links champion who is making his golfing comeback this week after four months on the sidelines with a viral infection, slipped to a two-over 72 for 140.
Andrew Oldcorn, the winner of the Q-school back in 1983 and the oldest player in this year's field at 49, showed he is still up for the challenge with a 68 for his 140 total while former Ryder Cup player Andrew Coltart hit a battling one-under 71 on the Stadium course for a 142.

English 1-2-3-4 after 36 holes of Final Q School

FROM THE EUROPEAN TOUR WEBSITE
English starlet Charlie Ford and his more experienced compatriot Simon Khan grabbed the lead on Day 2 of the Qualifying School – Final Stage with respective rounds of 64 and 63.
Despite blustery conditions at PGA Catalunya Resort in Girona, Spain, the two Englishmen tamed the Tour course to move to 11 under par 131 and open up a two-shot lead over their fellow countryman Jamie Elson, who signed for a round of 65.
Leicester lad Ford, who recently returned from the States, where he had studied at the University of Tennessee, joined the professional ranks with a handicap of +4. But, having already successfully negotiated the First and Second Stages earlier in the autumn, he is on course to finish the year with a cherished European Tour card in his hand.
The 24 year old, who won the 2008 Hawaii Intercollegiate and was also a member of last year’s European Palmer Cup students' team, would have grabbed the outright lead, were it not for bogeys on the 15th and 16th holes.
But Ford was still pleased with a round of 64 which included nine birdies, and also featured a large slice of luck on the second hole.
He explained: “I played pretty well all day, and made most of my putts. It was great to get off to a good start with a birdie on the first. I then got lucky on the second, where I hit a tree and it bounced out to about four feet of the flagstick. So although I still made a bogey, it could’ve been a lot worse. But I played really well for the rest of the front nine.
"I just kept it in play, hit it pretty close and made a few putts – on the first 14 holes, I made pretty much everything. I was slightly disappointed with the two bogeys at the end, but overall I’ve got to be very pleased with the position I’m in and how I’m playing.”
Unlike his younger compatriot, Khan has a wealth of Qualifying School experience, having made two successful previous visits to the Final Stage. After a season of struggle on The European Tour which saw him finish 127th in The Race to Dubai, he has adopted a more positive approach in recent weeks.
Khan said: “What I’ve done well is to manage my game better, and learn to accept the bad shots. I’ve been more sensible – if I have to chip out, I’ve just concentrated on minimising the damage, so to speak. I think over the last few weeks, I’ve just had a much better attitude to playing.
"I think all year you try to go out and shoot low scores, but it didn’t happen for me. But over the last few days and really towards the end of the year, I’ve just thought that whatever comes comes, and as long as I do my job I’m happy.
“It’s a long week, and you have to pace yourself in terms of practice and stuff. It’s been seven years since I was last here, and I must admit that in the early part of the week, it was a bit of a shock. I was mentally ready to play at the start of the week, but the realisation really hits you when you arrive at Q School.
"But the ball and the club don’t know you’re at Q School, so you’ve just got to go out and hit the shots to the best of your ability. That’s what I’ve been doing – accepting that whatever happens, happens.”
Fellow Englishman Elson is making his fourth attempt at the Qualifying School, and is looking to restore some confidence after dropping down to the EuroPro Tour for the past three seasons. Elson, who eagled the seventh hole en route to his round of 65, said: “I’m now feeling much more confident after two good rounds – and I played well at the Second Stage too, so more of the same would be great.”
Yet another Englishman, Sam Walker, is a further shot back in third place after a superb round of 64. Walker narrowly missed out on promotion to The European Tour through the Challenge Tour Rankings, but is hoping to lay claim to one of the 30 cards on offer this week.
He said: “I’ve just played the par-5s well and birdied the last for a great finish, which keeps the momentum going and is a bit of a boost going into tomorrow. On the whole it was a lot harder today.
"It was difficult to work out the right clubs because of the wind, so you were just playing for the safety shot most of the time and hoping to hole a few putts. Fortunately I managed to take most of my chances.”
Overnight leader Julien Guerrier of France found life somewhat tougher on the more demanding Stadium course, having opened up with a round of 60 on the shorter Tour course. His round of 75 moved him back to a share of fifth place on seven under par alongside Sweden’s Jarmo Sandelin, who signed for a round of 69.
Guerrier, the 2006 British amateur championship winner, said: “On the first nine I had no birdies at all, so it was difficult to keep under par. My long game was not very good at all today, but my short game was much better. Without my short game, I could’ve been ten over par today, so it saved me.
“I found it difficult to turn the page after my round yesterday. Everyone was congratulating me, and it was hard to start again. It’s not a bad score though – looking at the other scores, I’m probably average if not better on this course. There’s a long way to go though – even ten under par is probably not safe.”
Indeed, with four rounds remaining, there is still everything to play for.

SECOND ROUND TOTALS
Par 142 (72+70)
131 Charlie Ford (Eng) 67 64, Simon Khan (Eng) 68 63.
133 Jamie Elson (Eng) 68 65.
134 Sam Walker (Eng) 70 64.
135 Julien Guerrier (Fra) 60 75, Jarmo Sandelin (Swe) 66 69.
136 Lasse Jensen (Den) 64 72, Gary Murphy (Ire) 69 67, Marco Soffietti (Ita) 72 64.
137 Patrick Sjoland (Swe) 72 65, Alessandra Tadini (Ita) 68 69.
Selected scores
138 Philip Archer (Eng) 68 709, Scott Drummond (Sco) 69 69, Steven O'Hara (Sco) 68 70(jt 12th).
140 Stephen Gallacher (Sco) 68 72, Andrew Oldcorn (Sco) 72 68 (tied 35th).
142 Andrew Coltart (Sco) 71 71 (jt 65th).
143 Callum Macaulay (Sco) 70 73, George Murray (Sco) 73 70 (jt 75th).
145 Greig Hutcheon (Sco) 73 72, Eric Ramsay (Carnoustie) 72 73 (jt 106th).
146 Jamie McLearie (Sco) 72 74 (jt 116th).
147 Alan McLean (Sco) 76 71 (jt 126th).

ITALY WIN WORLD CUP ... SCOTLAND

FINISH LAST OF 28 IN CHINA

Italy's Molinari brothers won the World Cup of Golf in a tight finish with long-time leaders Ireland and defending champions Sweden at Mission Hills, China today.
Scotland, represented by David Drysdale and Alastair Forsyth, finished last of the 28 countries after a nightmare final foursomes round of 78 with halves of 37 and 41.
Spain, with Sergio Garcia and Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano in harness, astonishingly finished second last on 281.

ITALY CREATE HISTORY BY WINNING THE

OMEGA MISSION HILLS WORLD CUP

By MICHAEL GIBBSONS, Deputy Chief Press Officer, European Tour
Italy created golfing history by winning the Omega Mission Hills World Cup for the first time after a thrilling final round battle with Ireland and Sweden came down to the 72nd hole, where the Molinari brothers combined perfectly to get up and down from a greenside bunker to take the title by a single stroke.
Standing on the last tee on the Olazábal Course with a one stroke lead over playing partners Ireland and Sweden who were approaching the 18th green, Franceso fired a perfect drive down the middle of the fairway to set up Italy’s victory charge.
With Edoardo standing over his approach shot to the green, Sweden’s Henrik Stenson watched in agony as his 45ft birdie putt to tie the Italians lipped out, leaving Italy needing a par four to create history – providing Ireland did not make birdie.
Edoardo pushed his approach into the bunker before Rory McIlroy gave Ireland one last chance, but Graeme McDowell could only watch on as his birdie attempt stayed above ground giving Italy their chance to make history.
“It’s been a tough day and we have been playing against some of the best golfers in the world. It was really tough until the last, but it feels even better when it is like that,” said Francesco
“It’s really great for Italy. I think we deserved it as we attacked from the first day with every putt and every shot and we tried to make as many birdies as possible.
“I was lucky to hole two big putts on 12 and 13 which were probably the key moment and we just had to hang in there and hope for the best.”
Edoardo, the European Challenge Tour No 1 and winner of last week’s Dunlop Phoenix in Japan, echoed his brother’s joy, adding: “It was a very sweet feeling after holing the putt. When I saw the bull in the bunker, it was lying okay, and I just said, ‘Francesco, just knock it on the green anywhere, and I'm going to hole the putt.’
“It was I think a great way to finish, to win by one shot against some really good teams like Ireland and Sweden. I mean, all of the players involved in the other teams were Ryder Cup players, so I think we probably had not realised what we have done today. But I think it's going to be pretty good coming back home.”
Irish duo McIlroy and McDowell had stretched their overnight lead to three shots on the front nine, but failed to further advance their score on the way home and a final round two under 70 was not enough to secure what would have been a wire-to-wire victory.
Sweden produced a gallant title defence as World No 7 Stenson and Karlsson, who was beaten in a play-off by Edoardo last week in Japan, carded a final round three under par 69.
England finished fourth at 26 under par as an impressive bogey-free eight under 64 came just too late for Ian Poulter and Ross Fisher.
Hiroyuki Fujita and Ryuji Imada claimed fifth for Japan a further four shots back after a 69 with Robert Allenby and Stuart Appleby earning sixth for Australia.
South Africa, Wales, Y E Yang’s Korea, Martin Kaymer’s Germany and USA, who shot a brilliant bogey-free final round ten under par 62, rounded out the top ten at 20 under par.
But the day belonged to Italy who put their names in the history books with a brilliant performance.

FROM THE EUROPEAN TOUR WEBSITE:
Italy won the Omega Mission Hills World Cup by one shot from Ireland and Sweden as brothers Francesco and Edoardo Molinari carded a four under par 68 in today’s final round foursomes.
Younger brother Francesco crucially holed three consecutive birdie putts on the back nine before European Challenge Tour Number One Edoardo tapped home at the last to follow up last week’s win in Japan as Italy won a first World Cup at 29 under par.
Irish duo Rory McIlroy and Graeme McDowell had stretched their overnight lead to three shots on the front nine, but failed to pick up a shot on the way home and a final round of two under 70 was not enough to secure what would have been a a wire-to-wire victory.
Sweden produced a gallant title defence as World Number Seven Henrik Stenson and Robert Karlsson, who was beaten in a play-off by Edoardo last week in Japan, carded a final round three under par 69.
England finished fourth at 26 under par as an impressive bogey-free eight under 64 came just too late for Ian Poulter and Ross Fisher.
Hiroyuki Fujita and Ryuji Imada claimed fifth for Japan a further four shots back after a 69 with Robert Allenby and Stuart Appleby earning sixth for Australia.
South Africa, Wales, Y E Yang’s Korea, Martin Kaymer’s Germany and USA, who shot a brilliant bogey-free final round ten under par 62, rounded out the top ten at 20 under par.
Italy held a one shot lead over Ireland as the final group came down the 18th and Francesco then found the middle of the fairway at the 460 yard par four, while McDowell found rough for the first time in the final round foursomes.
But World No 10 McIlroy managed to put his approach to 15 feet and Edoardo shanked his effort into one of the deep bunkers that are so prominent around the Olazábal course at Mission Hills.
A further twist was provided when younger brother Francesco got Challenge Tour No 1 Edoardo out of trouble, splashing out to within three feet.
McDowell left his birdie putt agonisingly short - it was almost certainly on the right line - and Edoardo atoned for his approach by holing the straightforward putt.

FINAL TOTALS
Par 288 (4x72)
259 ITALY (Edoardo and Francesco Molinari) 64 66 61 68.
260 IRELAND (Rory McIlroy and Graeme McDowell) 58 68 64 70, SWEDEN (Robert Karlsson and Henrik Stenson) 64 65 62 69.
262 ENGLAND (Ian Poulter and Ross Fisher) 66 69 63 64.
266 JAPAN (Hiroyuki Fujita and Ryuji Imada) 62 71 64 69.
267 AUSTRALIA (Stuart Appleby and Robert Allenby) 68 70 62 67.
268 WALES (Stephen Dodd and Jamie Donaldson) 66 68 64 70, GERMANY (Alex Cejka and Martin Kaymer), 66 71 66 65, SOUTH KOREA (Charlie Wi and Yang-Yong Eun) 64 75 61 68, SOUTH AFRICA (Rory Sabbatini and Richard Sterne) 65 70 62 71, UNITED STATES (Nick Watney and John Merrick) 67 72 67 62.
271 CHILE (Hugo Leon and Martin Ureta) 69 67 65 70, VENEZUELA (Alfredo Adrian and Jhonattan Vegas) 67 67 65 72.
272 DENMARK (Soren Kjeldsen and Soren Hansen) 66 70 66 70, INDIA (Jyoti Randhawa and Jeev Milka Singh) 67 68 65 72.
273 PHILIPPINES (Mars Pucay and Angelo Que) 68 72 64 69, SINGAPORE (Lam Chi Bing and Mardan Mamat) 66 70 66 71, THAILAND (Prayad Marksaeng and Thongchai Jaidee) 67 70 67 69.
274 ARGENTINA (Tana Goya and Rafael Echenique) 61 75 64 74.
276 FRANCE (Christian Cevaer and Thomas Levet) 67 73 67 69, NEW ZEALAND (Danny Lee and David Smail) 67 68 70 71.
277 CHINA (Zhang Lian-wei and Liang Wen-chong) 65 71 68 73, CHINESE TAIPEI 67 74 67 69, PAKISTAN (Muhammad Munir and Muhammad Shabbir) 69 75 64 69.
279 CANADA (Graham Delaet and Stuart Anderson) 64 74 65 76.
280 BRAZIL (Rafael Barcellos and Ronaldo Francisco) 68 75 68 69.
281 SPAIN (Sergio Garcia and Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano) 69 71 67 74.
284 SCOTLAND (David Drysdale and Alastair Forsyth) 69 73 64 78.

McKechnie wins NSW Open

Leigh McKechnie, 36, has won the New South Wales Open following a dramatic final day at The Vintage, Hunter Valley.
With rounds of 70-72-70-69, McKechnie finished one stroke ahead of James Nitties to record his first victory on the PGA Tour of Australasia.
“I am just delighted. With the conditions the way they were today I knew I had a chance, but to actually win is unbelievable.”
Coming down the stretch McKechnie was oblivious to the drama that was unfolding around him.
“I had no idea of what was happening. I saw my name on the leaderboard when I was on the 15th but I didn’t see any numbers.”
At this stage overnight leader Jason Norris was struggling in the difficult conditions of heat and wind, dropping eight shots through the front nine to throw the tournament wide open.
Norris, the 2007 champion, finished the final round eight over to be even par for the championship and in a tie for fourth position, along with New Zealander Mark Purser.
Beginning the final round seven shots in arrears, McKechnie made a steady start before making birdie on the toughest hole on the course, the par 3, 8th holing his shot from the greenside trap.
With birdies on three of the last six holes, including on the 18th, McKechnie had posted the score to catch with Nitties still out on the course.
Nitties had his chances after an eagle on the 14th, followed by a birdie on the 15th to draw level with McKechnie. However a bogey on the par 3, 17th effectively meant he had to birdie the 18th to force a play-off.
When his approach into the 18th came up short and his putt missed, McKechnie’s wait had come to the end and he’d become the NSW Open Champion.
Scott Arnold fired the day’s low round with a 5-under, 66 to record another top-5 finish after finishing in a tie for runner-up last week at the Cellarbrations NSW PGA Championship at Wollongong.
Arnold’s 66 will have to go down as one of the rounds of the year and at one stage the 24-year-old took the lead despite being the 5th group out for the day.
Arnold will go into the Australian Open starting on Thursday, on his home course, with plenty of confidence.
By winning the NSW Open, McKechnie guarantees his place in the Australian Open field this week and the Australian PGA Championship in Coolum in a fortnight.
LEADING FINAL TOTALS
Par 284 (4x71)
All players from Australia unless stated
281 Leigh McKechnie 70 72 70 69.
282 James Nitties 65 68 73 76.
283 Scott Arnold 66 80 71 66.
284 Jason Norris 70 71 64 69, Mark Purser (NZ) 66 73 74 71.
286 Rohan Blizard 71 70 67 78, Andrew Bonhomme 68 71 74 73, Siumon Furneaux 70 73 70 73, Brad McIntosh 70 72 71 73, Craig Scott 67 70 76 73.

PERFECT TEES, PERFECT GREENS, PERFECT WINTER GOLF:

IT'S THE TORRANCE COURSE AT FAIRMONT, ST ANDREWS

NEWS RELEASE
2009 has been a phenomenal year at Fairmont St Andrews. Not only has the luxury five-star hotel completed a comprehensive £17 million refurbishment program, hosted the world’s press and political leaders with the G20 Summit but it has also enjoyed substantial changes to its two championship courses and seen two great tour events, the Cleveland/Srixon Scottish Senior Open and The Partypoker.com International Open, being played on The Torrance.
The Torrance course, that was designed by Ryder Cup captain Sam Torrance and major Open winner Gene Sarazen (also known as The Squire), was always recognised as a secret hidden gem in Scotland. Now its star is rising. Acclaimed by critics and discerning locals alike, The Torrance is one of the finest courses in Scotland.
The most striking changes were the re-design of eight holes and the new traditional Scottish links style revetted bunkers. Some tee lines have also been changed also to accentuate the views and playability of the hole.
The greens, usually considered the best and fastest in the area, are simply divine. New state of the art drainage and planting has been added that allows for fantastic golf all year round. On The Torrance course this winter, golfers will be treated to brand new tees, critically acclaimed greens and stunning panoramic views of the Fairmont St Andrews hotel, the town of St Andrews and the Eden Estuary.
Golfers don’t have to play on temporary greens this winter. Enjoy perfect golf in perfect conditions here at Fairmont St Andrews.
Speaking about the Scottish Senior Open and the new changes, Sam Torrance, ambassador for Fairmont St Andrews said ‘I am honoured that such a great event as the Cleveland/Srixon Scottish Seniors Open has come to The Torrance course. This was my first design and I am very proud of it.
"The changes have really helped take the course to an all new level and I think when people play it, they will thoroughly enjoy not only the exciting layout with the new revetted links bunkers, but also the joy of playing in such a fabulous setting.’
2010 is looking equally bright for The Torrance with the Scottish Senior Open returning and also Open Qualifying for the 2010 Open Championship at St Andrews.
Charles Head, General Manager at the resort today said, ‘This is the 150th anniversary of the Open Championship and it is particularly appropriate that the championship is being held in St Andrews, the Home of Golf. We are very much looking forward to hosting the great and the good during Open qualifying.
"Our courses and facilities here provide for a great day out, especially for groups of golfers. With our sea view clubhouse, we also have one of golf's greatest 19th holes, as listed in James Finegan's classic golf reference book GREAT PLACES TO PLAY. The Fairmont St Andrews courses are located in golfers’ heaven with Kingsbarns Golf Links, The Castle course and the Old Course only a few minutes away.’
For more information, visit www.fairmont.com/standrews