Unknown Cayeux earns Tiger Woods as fan with gritty effort
(Reuters)
Updated: 2005-08-19 09:54

AKRON, Ohio, Aug 18 (Reuters) - Tiger Woods admitted he had never heard of Marc Cayeux until he saw his name penciled in as part of his threesome for the opening round of the WGC NEC Invitational.

But after 18 holes at the Firestone Golf Club on Thursday, Woods had learned enough to be impressed by the gritty Zimbabwean.

If playing in his first event in the United States alongside the world's most famous player didn't provide enough anxious moments, Cayeux also had to deal with a badly burned left hand wrapped in the protective lining of a baseball glove.

After injuring his hand last week while lighting a barbecue, Cayeux might not have made the trip to the U.S. if it had not been a WGC event that boasts an invitation only, 72-player field and a guaranteed pay day.

Indeed, there is some concern still that Cayeux's hand might not stand up to four gruelling rounds but for one day at least the 27-year-old stood up to the pain and the world's best golfer, carding a solid one-over 71 to sit in a tie for 23rd.

"Incredible, absolutely incredible," said Woods, who opened with a four-under 66 to grab a share of the first round lead alongside Fiji's Vijay Singh and unheralded Swede Henrik Stenson. "The fact he even went out there and played and grinded it out like he did was absolutely fantastic.

"He had a hard time hanging onto the club, and obviously the pain, but he gutted it out and it was cool to watch. He should be very proud of himself and hopefully he can make it through all four days this week," Woods said..

"To do what he did today was impressive, you look at that hand it's not pretty. Obviously he's in a lot of pain and he dealt with it fine, and he just grinded his way around the golf course and did what he could.

"You could see he was fighting all day, every time he made impact it was going to hurt," Woods said.

Dealing with adversity is not something new for Cayeux, who qualified for a spot in the elite international field by winning the South African tour championship.

He has spent his career scratching out a living on the European Tour sending money home to help support his mother and father, who lost their jobs in the political upheaval that has surrounded President Robert Mugabe's government.

"I'm in a bit of pain, but the pain killers helped a lot," said Cayeux. "I wanted to play a full 18, I wanted to play until it started bleeding, and it didn't.

"I'm glad I played. It was just a great experience. Even if I had played badly I would have enjoyed it.

"If I didn't have that glove, I don't think I would have made it through today.

One of the world's most recognisable athletes, Woods attracted the usual large galleries to the Firestone on Thursday while Cayeux attracted the usual question: "Who is that guy".

"They were all for Tiger," smiled Cayeux, a lowly 242 in the world rankings. "There were a few guys cheering me on, but Tiger has the most, and you can see why he is number one.

"My main fan? He was caddying with me."

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