Australia’s Adam Scott this week makes his appearance in the Shriners Hospital for Children Open in Las Vegas, Nevade and where some 20-year years the now Masters champion was a student at the University of Las Vegas.
Scott, and now aged 39, competed on the universities golf team from 1999 to 2000 before electing to turn professional late in June 2000 on the European Tour and this after having been competing early that same year on the European Tour.
But then nothing quite prepared the young Australian for an event that would take place on Sunday 11th June, 2000 at the Rio Secco Golf Club in Las Vegas.
“I had decided to turn pro and I got Butch’s (Harmon) advice, and he was coaching me at the time and he felt strongly I should go and play on the European Tour first just to get the experience,” Scott recalled.
Adam Scott looks back fondly on the day Tiger Woods beat him by nine shots and a week before Tiger won the 2000 US Open by 15 shots
“Anyway, I was here in Las Vegas and Tiger was working with Butch, and Tiger was stopping-in on his way to Pebble Beach for the U.S. Open in 2000.
“It was the Sunday before the week of the U.S. Open and Butch said to me on Saturday that Tiger is coming in and he goes and plays, you can go and play with him.
“I was so nervous, of course. We went out and played a match and I think I was maybe one-down through the turn at Rio Secco, and then Tiger stepped it up going birdie, birdie and then eagles and stuff, and he actually double-bogeyed the ninth hole in a round of 63.
“He closed me out on 14th and that included a double bogeyh for a 63.
“I was a bit blown away by what I saw. It was quite windy and I thought I had played quite well, and thought I had shot even par and I was nine off the pace.
“I then made a throwaway comment to Butch that maybe I should reconsider turning pro and the only thing that made feel real good was that Tiger won the U.S. Open by 15 shots the next week.
“I was quite happy to see that no-one else really played like that (laughing)”.
Scott is teeing-up in the $US 7m event having finished T17 at last week’s Safeway Open, notching his 164th career top-25 finish.
