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WORLD GOLF CHAMPIONSHIPS
| Accenture Match Play Championship quick factsFeb. 15, 2008
Dates: February 18-24, 2008 (tournament days: February 20-24) Schedule of Events Monday-Tuesday, February 18-19: Practice rounds and pre-tournament interviews Wednesday, February 20: 32 first-round matches Thursday, February 21: 16 second-round matches Friday, February 22: 8 third-round matches Saturday, February 23: 4 quarterfinal matches;2 semifinal matches Sunday, February 24: 36-hole championship match; 18-hole consolation match UPDATE ON DEFENDING CHAMPION HENRIK STENSON Henrik Stenson earned his first career PGA TOUR victory at the 2007 World Golf Championships-Accenture Match Play Championships, which was his second start at the event (he tied for 17th in 2006). He became the first Swede to win a World Golf Championships event after ousting defending champion Geoff Ogilvy 2 and 1 in the 36-hole championship match. Earlier, Stenson won the Dubai Desert Classic, making February 2007 a big month for him. He went from No. 12 in the Official World Golf Rankings at the end of 2006 to No. 5 after his win at the Accenture Match Play Championship. Last year on the PGA TOUR, Stenson followed up his win with a tie for ninth at the AT&T Classic. He tied for eighth at the BMW PGA Championship and tied for third at the HSBC World Match Play Championship on the European Tour. He also tied for fifth at the Target World Challenge. So far this season, Stenson (who is not a PGA TOUR member) has tied for 28th at the Mercedez-Benz Championship and has posted four top-10 finishes in his first four starts on the European Tour. He tied for second at the Abu Dhabi Golf Championship and finished solo second at the Commercialbank Qatar Masters presented by Dolphin Energy. Stenson is currently ranked No. 13 in the world.
UPDATE ON TIGER WOODS Tiger Woods has won two Accenture Match Play Championships (2003-04) and has 14 official PGA TOUR wins in 25 World Golf Championships starts. Last year, Woods collected two World Golf Championships wins at the Bridgestone Invitational and CA Championship. Official World Golf Championship Victories (14):
Tiger Woods also won the 2000 World Cup with David Duval in 2000, an unofficial-money World Golf Championships event at the time, giving him a total of 15 World Golf Championships titles. Breakdown of 2008 field of 64 players First-time Participants: 18 - Germany's Martin Kaymer (No. 21); South Africa's Richard Sterne (No. 30); USA's Hunter Mahan (No. 35); Argentina's Andres Romero (No. 36); USA's Woody Austin (No. 37); Denmark's Soren Hansen (No. 41); Spain's Miguel A. Jiminez (No. 43); USA's Boo Weekley (No. 44); England's Nick Dougherty (No. 47); USA's Brandt Snedeker (No. 48); Australia's John Senden (No. 54); Sweden's Peter Hanson (No. 56); Colombia's Camilo Villegas (No. 57); Wales' Brenden Jones (No. 61); USA's Jonathan Byrd (No. 62); Sweden's Daniel Chopra (No. 63); USA's Pat Perez (No. 64); and USA's J.B. Holmes (No. 65) First-time World Golf Championships Participants: 8 - Germany's Martin Kaymer (No. 21); Spain's Miguel A. Jiminez (No. 43); USA's Brandt Snedeker (No. 48); Sweden's Peter Hanson (No. 56); Colombia's Camilo Villegas (No. 57); Wales' Brenden Jones (No. 61); Sweden's Daniel Chopra (No. 63); and USA's Pat Perez (No. 64). Most countries represented:
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Stuart Appleby is participating in his 27th career World Golf Championships event at the 2008 Accenture Match Play Championship, having competed in every World Golf Championships event since the inception of the series in 1999. The 2001 American Express Championship was canceled due to the events of Sept. 11. Appleby is the only player to compete in all 10 Accenture Match Play Championships. Justin Leonard had played the first eight but did not qualify in 2007 because his Official World Golf Ranking dropped to No. 181. He is back this year, moving to No. 51 on the OWGR. The most consecutive matches won in Accenture Match Play Championship history is 13 by Tiger Woods (2003-05). Woods' streak of 13 consecutive victories ended with his 3-and-1 loss to Nick O'Hern in the second round in 2005. David Toms won his first two matches in 2006 to extend his streak to eight consecutive wins before falling to Tom Lehman, 4 and 3 in the third round. The longest current streak of matches won belongs to Henrik Stenson (6, 2007). David Toms' 6-and-5 win in 2005 over Chris DiMarco marked the largest Championship Match margin of victory in tournament history. Darren Clarke defeated Tiger Woods, 4 and 3, in 2000. The 6-up lead after the morning session was the largest lead in tournament history. Having also lost in the championship match to Tiger Woods in 2004, 2006 runner-up Davis Love III became the third player to play in the Championship Match twice -- joining Tiger Woods (2003-04) and David Toms (2003-05). Tiger Woods' 9-and-8 first-round 2006 victory over Stephen Ames marks the largest match-play victory in the history of the Accenture Match Play Championship. Last year, Ames defeated Robert Karlsson in the first round, 8 and 7, for the second-largest match-play victory at the Accenture Match Play Championship. Scott Verplank's first-round win over Lee Westwood (26 holes) in 2006 tied the tournament record for longest match, that being Mike Weir over Loren Roberts in the first round in 2003. In 2006, Ben Crane carded the second hole-in-one in Accenture Match Play Championship history when he holed a 6-iron from 184 yards on the par-3 16th hole. Scott McCarron posted the only other ace in tournament history at the 204-yard 14th hole (now the fifth) en route to a runner-up finish. Accenture Match Play Championship Tiger Woods has played in the most matches in Accenture Match Play Championship history (31), with 25 wins in that span. David Toms (29) is second while Davis Love III (27) is third. In the nine-year history of the event, Tiger Woods is the only player to win as the top seed (and he has done so twice). In 2002, Kevin Sutherland emerged as the victor after starting as the 62nd seed. The No. 1- to No. 4-ranked players each year at the Accenture Match Play Championship: 1 2 3 4 | HEADLINES
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