DUBLIN — Paul Azinger, who never watches an opponent swing at the golf ball because he prefers to be “obsessed” with his own game, nonetheless occasionally will catch sight of the trajectory of an opponent's shot.

        And there was no way he could miss looking up at the trajectory of Tiger Woods' 2-iron approach on the pivotal par-5 fifth hole at the Memorial Tournament here Sunday, because of the distinctive thwack Woods' club made with the ball and the high, drawing nature of the ball's flight into the green.

        As it turned out, the fifth hole was the turning point: Azinger, who had a one-stroke lead going into the hole, hit his ball in the water. Woods made eagle with a 6-foot putt and came out of the hole two strokes up on Azinger and was never headed after that.

        So, when they were walking together up the 17th fairway, Woods having the tournament in hand, Azinger turned to Woods.

        “What did you hit on five?” he asked Woods.

        “Two-iron,” Woods answered.

        Azinger just shook his head. Woods had hit his 2-iron 249 yards.

        In an earlier round, same hole, he hit his 2-iron 265.

        “If I've got 265, brother, I can't get there with a 3-wood,” Azinger said. “I've always been one of the top 20 longest drivers. Maybe I'm one of the Top 50 now. This guy is hitting 2-iron farther than my 3-wood. That's pretty nice for him.”

        Then, Azinger added something matter-of-factly that expressed the marvel he had witnessed in Woods' play Sunday.

        “He's a phenom,” Azinger said. “It looked easy for him.”

        So, how good was that 2-iron on No.5, Tiger?

        “After Paul put the ball in the water (using a 3-wood), my main thought was just get the ball in the air, and on dry land, somewhere,” he said. “I absolutely flushed the 2-iron (i.e. hit it perfectly square).

        “It was just a high, towering draw back up against the wind,” he said. “As it was coming down, you could see the wind hitting it and knocking it to the right. I was just praying it was enough club, and it was there.”

        On the seventh hole, another par-5, Woods birdied thanks to a 3-wood he had to hit 259 yards just to carry the bunker. He picked up another stroke on Azinger there.

        Woods was 14 under par on the par-5s during the four-round tournament. Azinger was only 2 under, and therein was the difference. In effect, Woods is playing a different course than everybody else because of his tremendous length off the tee and out of the fairway.

        “Tiger is guaranteed 10 under on the par-5s whenever he tees it up in a tournament,” said Stewart Cink, who finished in fourth place, eight strokes behind Woods. “All he has to do is kick his ball around the rest of the way and he can win tournaments.

        “Most of us just don't have the ability to do that on the par-5s. Not only is he long, but he's really straight.”

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