Streelman ready to tee it up with Woods
SAN DIEGO -- Kevin Streelman was practicing on the Torrey Pines putting green Thursday morning when he came face to face with Tiger Woods.
He was too afraid to introduce himself.
When the Winfield native tees off with Woods in today's final group at the Buick Invitational, the top-ranked golfer in the world will definitely know Streelman's name.
The past few days have been a whirlwind for the 1997 graduate of Wheaton Warrenville South High School.
An alternate as late as Thursday, Streelman shot a 5-under-par 67 in his opening round. The PGA Tour rookie then cemented today's tee time with Tiger by shooting 69 Friday on the notoriously tough South Course.
Streelman will start today in second place at 8 under, 4 strokes behind Woods, who leads at 12 under after a second-round 65.
Streelman birdied the 18th hole to finish ahead of Stewart Cink, who's at 7 under and alone in third place.
"I was the last alternate," the 29-year-old Streelman said. "I was sitting on the putting green and they came up to me -- it was about four minutes before my tee time -- and they said, 'Here you go, you're on the first tee.' "
Streelman's fiancee, Courtney Caples, had just enough time to hop a plane from Phoenix, but parents Dennis and Mary Lou Streelman will have to watch from their Winfield home.
"We were thrilled when we got the call," said Dennis Streelman, 64, a medical consultant. "He had a strong day on Friday and his putting was excellent. We didn't expect him to even play, so for him being teamed up with Tiger is very exciting for the whole family."
Streelman said that even after missing the cut at last week's Bob Hope Classic and making only 2 birdies at the Sony two weeks ago, he's relaxed and mentally ready to face Woods and the rest of the field.
"I've been swinging the club really well," he said. "I got to see Stan Utley, my buddy coach, on Tuesday, and he saw a couple things that we fixed, and all of a sudden the putter started feeling a lot better."
Streelman, who grew up playing at Cantigny Golf Club in Wheaton with his family, will tackle the South Course again today with Woods, who is trying to win the $1 million purse for the fourth straight year.
That doesn't intimidate the rookie, who finished second in the Ultimate Game nail-biter last spring in Las Vegas, a winner-take-all, $2 million event.
Streelman entered this week's Buick Invitational at No. 1,114 in the Official World Ranking.
"I'm not nervous, just excited," said Streelman, who is playing at Torrey Pines for the first time professionally. "It's going to be a heck of a day playing with Tiger. I'm really looking forward to it, to be honest. It's still just me and the golf course."