Poulter's ace puts the focus on his game, not his clothes

AUGUSTA, Ga. -- Among his many attributes, Tiger Woods has the ability to needle his competitors. And he relishes the opportunity to let Ian Poulter have it whenever he sees the English golfer, who is perhaps better known for his on-course attire than his acumen.

Of course, it didn't help when Poulter disrobed for a U.K.-based golf magazine in January and said in the accompanying article that when he plays to his potential, "it will be just me and Tiger." That brought Poulter plenty of unwanted attention. Since then, Woods has taken to calling Poulter -- a sometimes neighbor in Orlando, Fla. -- "No. 2." "Tiger laughs all the time about it," Poulter said Thursday after making an ace at No. 16 and shooting a 2-under-par 70 in the first round of the Masters. "He keeps calling me No. 2, which is nice. So I guess I got to just keep playing better golf, and I might get there."
Poulter, 32, took a small step in that direction Thursday at Augusta National, where his lime green pants were, for once, overshadowed by his golf. Poulter's hole-in-one gave him the lead, briefly, and he remained near the top of the leaderboard for most of the day. He made different headlines when he posed nude -- except for a strategically placed golf bag -- and made his comments for the March issue of GolfWorld (U.K.) magazine. "The trouble is, I don't rate anyone else," said Poulter, a seven-time winner on the European Tour who is ranked 24th in the world. "Don't get me wrong, I really respect every professional golfer, but I know I haven't played to my full potential, and when that happens, it will be just me and Tiger." Uh-oh. Among the tabloid headlines:

"Poulter's mouth joins his trousers in being a bit loud." "It's Ian Poulter's Turn to Piss Off Tiger."

Poulter took a beating in tabloid-mad Britain and has suffered his fair share of abuse from other players. "It was tricky on the Thursday in Dubai, to be honest," Poulter said of the week the story came out. "I think I've weathered it pretty good. I was basically saying how good Tiger was and how achievable I really think it is to get to the No. 2 spot, and again, if you play well over a year period or even a twoyear period, you can get there, and that's what I'm trying to achieve right now. "Among the guys, it was friendly banter, but in the newspaper and seeing the comments in there and seeing what people think and comparing to Tiger … I wasn't comparing to Tiger. I wasn't saying I was going to win 84 tournaments on the PGA Tour; I haven't won one yet. To be compared to him was a little unfair." Poulter has not exactly lit up scoreboards around the world since his comments, with no top-10 finishes and a tie for 57th two weeks ago at the WGC-CA Championship. But Poulter has long been regarded as an up-and-coming player. Last year, he was one of just seven to make the cut in all four major championships, tying for 13th here at the Masters. It was less than 10 years ago that Poulter was working in a pro shop -- "selling Mars Bars and golf balls" -- while his peers were working on their games. Now he has mansions in Orlando and Buckinghamshire, England, and he has his top-25 world ranking. And, thanks to an 8-iron shot from 169 yards at the par-3 16th hole, he has some crystal from the Masters (a hole-in-one earns a large crystal bowl). Poulter's ball landed on the right of the green, then trickled ever so slowly toward the cup and dropped in. "Massive, unbelievable buzz," he said. "It was a special moment, and the hairs on the back of your neck were standing up. It was great."

That extra adrenaline likely led to Poulter's only bogey of the day, a 5 at the 17th hole, where he knocked his approach over the green with a 5-iron. The shot traveled 203 yards and left him shaking his head.

It was one of just two greens Poulter missed in regulation, the other coming at the 12th hole, where he got up and down for par. "Ian played extremely well [today]," 1998 Masters champion Mark O'Meara said. Poulter agreed. "It was a near-flawless round," he said. "I don't know if 2 under par was a true reflection of how well I played today, but it was one of the best rounds of golf I've ever played. If I sit back at home tonight and think about it for 10 minutes, I wouldn't want to putt the ball in any different positions from where I did today. "I just wanted to play good golf. It's not about proving anybody wrong, to be honest. I fully believe in my own ability. That's down to me to go out and just play good golf, and if I can get my mindset right, then I know I can go out there and achieve big things, but that's down to me to go down and do that."