Wednesday, April 28, 2010

Woods plays down crowd abuse fear

Tiger Woods
Woods is again the centre of attention after returning to action at Quail Hollow

Tiger Woods insisted he can handle any abuse he might receive from the crowd at the Quail Hollow Championship.

Woods received a warm reception at the Masters on his return to action after revelations about his private life.

The North Carolina tournament is open to the paying public, and Woods could get a rougher ride than at the tightly controlled Masters in Augusta.

"It's (abuse) happened before, before any of this. I have dealt with that before," said the world number one.

"But as far as the fans here over the years, they have been great and there is no reason why that shouldn't continue."

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Woods stepped away from the sport last November after a series of revelations about his private life but returned at the Masters after a 144-day absence.

And the 14-time major winner admitted after the Masters that he had been spurred on by the crowd's reaction as he made his return to golf, eventually finishing fourth.

Meanwhile, Woods claimed the fun has returned to his game as a result of taking a self-imposed break.

"It's been more fun, no doubt. I have had a lot of struggles internally for a while now and that's one of the reasons why it wasn't that much fun," said Woods.

"The game is now where it used to be and where it should be. It should be fun. It is a game.

"Even though I do it for a living, it's still a game and it wasn't that for a while."

As well as Quail Hollow in North Carolina, Woods has also entered The Players Championship which takes place at Sawgrass in Florida between 6 and 9 May.

Masters winner Phil Mickelson is also set to return to action at Quail Hollow, although the world number two withdrew from his pro-am group on Wednesday, complaining of illness.

Mickelson, who still expects to make his first-round on Thursday, was sick at his hotel on Tuesday night and called for assistance after the fifth hole needing treatment for dehydration.

The popular left-hander admitted his success at Augusta in April was the most special of his career with his wife, Amy, who is undergoing treatment for breast cancer, watching on.

"Amy and I were talking this last couple of weeks about how glad we were that she was there, that the kids were there, that we could look back on it," said Mickelson.

"To have that together given what the past year has brought, it has just made it probably the most special tournament win that I have had."

However, the victory has also increased Mickelson's desire for success, and he is now targeting the US Open at Pebble Beach in June as his main priority.

He said: "I have finished second in the US Open five times, it's a tournament that's my national open and growing up here, that's a special event for me."

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