Golf: Super Annika

By Vincent Musco Sports Central Columnist

As Annika Sorenstam holed a final par putt on Friday at the Colonial to conclude her 36-hole experiment on the PGA Tour, we already knew who won. And who lost.

Annika? She won. Her 71 on Thursday impressed everyone. Her consistency was frightening, and scarier still was that she made next to nothing on the greens. It could have been lower. Her Friday swing was not as reliable, but she showed her strength as a competitor by not letting her round get away.

She won with the galleries, as well. This was not a one-woman effort. She invited us all along, keeping her sunglasses high on her head so we could see what she was feeling, even on the walk from the 18th green, with tears streaming down her cheeks.

But let's try to avoid getting sentimental. Let's remember that in the past few weeks, Annika has played with, talked to, and been advised by Tiger Woods, has beaten players like Sergio Garcia and Tom Lehman in the first-round of the Colonial, and has hit irons, woods, sand shots, chip shots, and putts alongside the best male players in the world. Think she's been paying attention?

She admitted in a press conference that she has been watching the practice habits of the men. One thing anyone will notice when observing a PGA Tour member is the great amount of time they spend on the short game. Annika's weakness is her play around the greens, mostly because her consistency in ball-striking keeps her out of trouble, making her short game underused. She knows now, however, that to compete on the PGA Tour, that part of her game needs to improve.

Her contact with Tiger Woods can't hurt, either. With all the anti-Sorenstam hogwash muttered by the men of the PGA Tour this past month, you might think that Annika would never want to come back to the Tour ever again. But Woods' support overrides everyone else. His endorsement of Annika was what truly damned Vijay Singh, Nick Price, and any other golfer who had something negative to say.

But let's not forget that Annika did beat quite a few players on day one. Same course, same tees, same conditions, and she won. Even if she was unwaveringly confident coming in to this week, there still had to be some doubt that Thursday's round erased in her subconscious.

And now, let's face it, we all have to admit that Sorenstam is as much of a competitor as any player on the men's Tour. She fought her way to 74 on Friday, making clutch bogey putts to keep her card from inflating and her pride from escaping. She even holed a 15-footer for par on the final green which caused the gallery to erupt in celebration. She finished like a champion.

This all adds up to a new-and-constantly-improving Annika Sorenstam. Super Annika. This makes the poor women on the LPGA Tour the week's biggest losers.

The LPGA Tour has been Annika's for some time now, but thanks to her experiences this week, it will become even more so her own. She dominates her Tour the way Tiger dominates his. Now imagine if there were a superior tour on another planet, and Tiger decided to go and test his skills against the best the Milky Way has to offer. And imagine if he found his weaknesses, honed them, and derived a new hunger, passion, and confidence in his game. Would you want to play against Super Tiger with money on the line?

Didn't think so. It's Super Annika's world now. She can hang with the men. And she has the women at her mercy. Look out.

Article courtesy of Sports Central.