Grand opening? Tiger has slam on the mind as he embarks on '08

By: JAY PARIS - Staff Writer | Wednesday, January 23, 2008 11:44 PM PST ∞

LA JOLLA -- He's Tiger, so he can roar.

Tiger Woods' growl started on his worldwide Web site and now has the golf world by the tail.

Woods, when asked about winning golf's grand slam in 2008, didn't blink.

"I think it's easily within reason," he said in cyberspace.

Woods didn't retreat from that stance after Wednesday's Buick Invitational Pro Am. Woods, like Popeye, is the kind of guy to say, "I yam what I yam." That includes being the planet's best golfer, spinach or no spinach.

He already has 13 majors in his bag -- five shy of Jack Nicklaus' record -- and has held all four titles -- the Masters, U.S. Open, British Open and PGA Championship -- at the same time. But never in the same calendar year.

Will 2008 be that year, a season which brings June's U.S. Open to scenic Torrey Pines?

"Well, he's obviously a very confident player and he should be,'' said Phil Mickelson, the Rancho Santa Fe resident seemingly always chasing Tiger. "He's won countless majors. So he should be confident."

Confidence always rides shotgun with Tiger. He has more of it than Nike swooshes on his apparel -- and boy, is that saying something.

But when Woods speaks of such a grand goal, this isn't about a guy yapping to watch his gums move. Woods eyes this year's major courses and sparkles.

"The question is do I see it as a possibility, and I say, 'yes,' " Woods said. "A lot of different factors go into it and hopefully all those factors line up for me.

"The venues this year, I like all the venues. But I've liked all the venues before in the past. It's just a matter of getting your game coming together at the right time and getting all the right breaks. You're going to have to get lucky every now and then, and hopefully you get lucky at the right times."

Despite its best efforts, the Masters has yet to become Tiger-proof. Although Woods -- a four-time winner at Augusta -- did the unthinkable there last year when coming from ahead to lose to Zach Johnson.

Woods' success is well-documented at Torrey Pines, where he dominated as a junior player and aims for his fourth straight and sixth overall Buick Invitational title starting today.

This year's British Open is at Royal Birkdale, where Woods shot a final-day 66 with three birdies on the final four holes to enter the clubhouse as the 1998 leader. But he finished third behind champion Mark O'Meara and Brian Watts.

The last slam jewel is the PGA at Oakland Hills in Bloomfield Hills, Mich., where Woods played well in America's losing effort against Europe in the 2004 Ryder Cup.

The grand slam is about the only thing missing from Woods' impressive resume.

"It would be nice,'' said Woods, who tees off on the South Course this morning at 9. "It would be doing it a different way than I had done before. Hopefully I get it done."

Escondido's Lee Elder doesn't doubt Woods. Elder, the first African-American to play the Masters in 1975, said Woods' quest should be taken seriously.

"I really do think he can do it," the 73-year-old Elder said. "And I'm not just saying that because he said it. He will be at the top of his game once those tournaments roll around.

"He wouldn't have said that unless he was confident those certain courses are ones he feels comfortable on. Otherwise, I don't think he would make a statement like that."

O'Meara knows Woods as well as anyone, taking him under his wing when Woods turned pro in 1996. In speaking with Woods during the offseason, O'Meara sensed Woods, 32, is primed for something special.

"I reckon he's a focused as ever and fired-up and ready to go," O'Meara, 51, said. "I'd say he's very prepared for this year. He very easily could win all four majors."

While O'Meara outlasted Watts in a playoff for that '98 British Open title, Woods was the one making O'Meara sweat in the final round.

"You'd see his name come up on the board, (and I'd think) 'Oh God, here comes Tiger again' because I knew he would bring it,'' O'Meara said. "When I held him off in the British Open, I know I beat Brian Watts, but Tiger Woods was making a big push and I heard the roars and I knew it was him. It's unmistakable out there what's going on.''

Just like there's no mystery with what would make 2008 grand for Woods.

Bet against it at your own peril.

-- Contact staff writer Jay Paris at jparis8@aol.com.