MARANA, Ariz. -Spain's Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano won't have much trouble remembering whom he played in his first WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship.
He meets Tiger Woods in Wednesday's first round at Ritz Carlton Golf Club at Dove Mountain.
“I’m the underdog,”said Fernandez-Castano, a five-time European Tour winner ranked 48th in the world. "I have nothing to lose, and at the same time, I don't think he's at his best, so it's a good opportunity . . . I think he's beatable. Of course, I need to play good."
Fernandez-Castano lavished praise on Woods record, and his match-play prowess, and while he believes Woods will win a major again, he isn't sure if he will reach Jack Nicklaus-major championship record.
“What I’m sure about is he’s not going to be as dominant as what he used to be,” Fernandez-Castano said. “I think there are a lot of young guys, like Rory McIlroy, Martin Kaymer, Rickie Fowler, guys that have beaten him. They know the feeling of beating Tiger.
“He might be the No. 1 player again. He might win majors again, but I don’t think he will be as dominant as he was, like in 2000 and those times. Maybe I’m wrong, anything is possible with that guy, he’s so good."