Las Vegas, Nevada (February 24, 2012)–PGA Tour star Nick Watney moved to the Las Vegas Golf Region a few years ago to be closer to Las Vegas resident Butch Harmon. Watney is now an official Las Vegas golfer–along with about two dozen other Tour stars–and his latest claim to fame is taking down Tiger Woods in what Watney described as an "away" match. And it is becoming routine for Harmon disciples to beat Tiger. –By Brian Hurlburt.
"Butch just told me that the crowd will definitely be pro‑Tiger," Watney told the media gathered in Arizona following the round. "Which it was, which was fine. It's interesting to play sort of an away match. So the crowd was pro‑Tiger. And he just said that he's not going to game you. He's just going to go out and he wants to beat you. No matter if you guys are friends, no matter if you play practice rounds, he wants to beat you. So meet his level of intensity.But it was, like I said, a very standup match, no gamesmanship or anything like that. It was just hard fought. Maybe not the highest quality of‑‑ definitely not the highest quality of putting, but somebody had to win."
Butch Harmon operates the Butch Harmon School of Golf at Las Vegas' Rio Secco Golf Club. The School is open to all golfers with reservations. Rio Secco is also the home to the T-Mates female caddies and the Million Dollar Hole in One promotion. Click now for the official website of Rio Secco, where Watney and other Tour pros play and practice.
" I'm very happy to have won," Watney, who has become fairly close to Tiger over the years, also said. "I respect very much what Tiger has done in this game and for this game. So it was‑‑ I'm very happy to move on. I feel a bit fortunate, as well. We don't see him miss putts like that very often. And there were a few of them. I don't think that this will be a day that either of us will look back on as far as putting goes. But like I say, I'm happy to move on and get ready for Westwood, I guess … I was very excited to play him. I think I've gotten ‑‑ I wouldn't say close, but I think I know Tiger pretty well. He was extremely‑‑ he was a gentleman out there. We definitely both wanted to win, but I'm really happy to move on."
Watney now takes on Lee Westwood, one of the four number one seeds in the event that is being played at the Ritz-Carlton Golf Club at Dove Mountain. Phil Mickelson, another Harmon pro, took down Tiger for the fifth-straight time at Pebble Beach a few weeks ago. Woods worked with Harmon for many years, including his Tiger Slam year of 2000. Quotes courtesy ASAPSports.com.