In the second round of the 2005 WGC Matchplay, dominant world No.1 Tiger Woods was drawn to meet unheralded Australian Nick O’Hern in a classic David versus Goliath match.
Tiger, then the world No.2 after being usurped by Fiji’s Vijay Singh, had won the previous two editions of the match play event. He was expected to cruise into the third round against Perth lefthander O’Hern who, despite being ranked 32nd in the world at the time, had flown under the radar while playing most of his career in Europe.
Leading into the match, Tiger was an unbackable odds-on favourite against underdog O’Hern, a noted shortballer off the tee. Even experienced pundits were asking: “Nick O’Who?”. But match play is completely different beast to 72-hole strokeplay events. If a player gets hot anything can happen, and often does.
O’Hern’s primary focus was to stick to playing his own game while also attempting to block out the “Tigermania” delirium that accompanied the now 15-time major winner wherever he played. And given Tiger’s incredible record of closing out wins as a frontrunner, O’Hern’s plan on the first tee at La Costa Resort in Carlsbad, California, was to not fall behind early.
O’Hern faced an eight-foot birdie putt on the first to halve the hole. Several years later, his caddy at the time told him, “Mate, this is for the match here on the first hole”. O’Hern duly holed the putt then birdied his next two holes to take a two-up lead.
Riding a wave of momentum and remaining resolute, O’Hern never let Tiger back in as he holed every putt he needed to. At the 17th hole he drilled a 3 iron from the rough 183m into the green to set up a birdie that saw him close out the match 3&1 and shoot six-under.
O’Hern went on to beat Luke Donald in the third round before falling to Ian Poulter in the quarter finals.
But two years later, O’Hern proved his win over Tiger was no fluke when he faced the world No.1 in the third round of the WGC Matchplay at Dove Mountain in Tucson, Arizona.
The second encounter had more buzz and build-up, and Tiger Woods was out for revenge.
However, Tiger made an uncharacteristically sloppy start and O’Hern suddenly found himself 4up through seven holes. But on the eighth hole Tiger hit a magnificent three iron — replete with club twirl — and the momentum shifted instantly.
From the 10th hole, Tiger made three straight birdies before levelling the match at the 16th hole. Both players made birdie at the 18th to send the match into extra holes.
On the 19th hole, Tiger inexplicably missed a four-foot birdie putt that would’ve completed a remarkable Houdini-like escape. But O’Hern would make him pay at the second extra hole when he rolled in a 13-foot par putt to seal a dramatic win and deny Tiger once again.
O’Hern was crowned the “Tiger Killer” and is the only player to have beaten Woods twice in match play. The consistent lefthander lost in the quarter finals but reached a career-high ranking of 16th following the 2007 WGC Matchplay. He played full time on the PGA Tour until 2012.