After one glimpse at the Accenture Match Play brackets, how can you not predict -- and hope for -- a Sunday showdown between Geoff Ogilvy, defending champion, and Tiger Woods, the streaking wunderkind?
With Phil Mickelson getting unexpectedly dismissed 3 and 1 in the second round by Justin Rose, Tiger's biggest hurdle to reaching the finals would appear to be Charles Howell III, winner of last week's Nissan Open and a man who is riding his own hot hand. If they meet in the semi-finals, however, expect Howell to wilt under the heat of Tiger.
On the other side of the brackets, Ogilvy, the U.S. Open champ, has a rougher road to the finals. If he can get past the Niclas Fasth, a formidable Swede, today, he would face the winner of the match between European Ryder Cup member Paul Casey and Shaun Micheel, the former PGA Champ who took down Tiger last year in match play in Europe. And after them, three U.S. Ryder Cup members remain: David Toms, Chad Campbell and Stewart Cink. Still, my money is on Ogilvy to survive.
Upsets aren't just possible, they're probable; my hoped-for scenario could spoiled very quickly. But I can hope for a reason to watch the final match on Sunday.
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