Columnist Victoria Sun: May hoping to reprise stellar PGA Championship showing

Victoria Sun

Wednesday, Aug. 15, 2001 | 11:39 a.m.

Victoria Sun is a Las Vegas Sun sportswriter. Reach her at 259-4078 or by e-mail at victoria@lasvegassun.com.

A year ago in the PGA Championship played at Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville, Ky., Las Vegan Bob May went toe-to-toe with Tiger Woods on the final day.

May and Woods both birdied the last hole to finish 18-under for the tournament, sending them to a tense three-hole playoff.

May, a British Masters champion, was playing for his first PGA Tour victory while Woods was trying to defend his title.

Many thought May would crumble like a Hostess cupcake. He did just the opposite.

Woods birdied the first playoff hole, which turned out to be the margin of victory, then parred the next two. May parred all three holes to finish second.

But in the minds of many who watched the stirring final round, May was no afterthought.

As he prepares for this year's PGA Championship that starts Thursday at the Atlanta Athletic Club, May is happy to reflect on last year's memorable tournament. But he's even happier that his back is pain-free.

"It's gone by fast, but still people treat it almost like it was a couple weeks ago," May said Tuesday from Atlanta. "Just today, people kept coming up to me and saying 'Great playing, great show.' It's great knowing you have such great support."

At the beginning of this year, May was forced to withdraw from the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic with a severe back injury that kept him sidelined for nine weeks, from the middle of February until April when he entered the Masters.

Repetitive lifting of his infant daughter Madelyn resulted in two bulging discs in his back and set him back for much of the year.

"I was just starting to play really well," May said. "At the Hope I was 12-under, then I had to withdraw. That's no fun."

The injury didn't require surgery, but May was forced to go through a rehabilitation program.

He has made 14 of 19 cuts and has four top-25 finishes. He tied for 11th at the Compaq Classic of New Orleans in May.

"This year, I feel good going into the Championship," May said. "I'm hitting the ball good.

"My back feels good. It's going to be a tough golf course. It's long being that it's wet, so it's going to be a good test of golf."

May is feeling so good that he didn't rule out the possibility of repeating last year's thrilling run.

"I think I'm definitely capable of it," May said. "If you look at what I did last year, I didn't just play one good round of golf, I put together three good rounds.

"Some of the shots I hit in the final round were pretty good clutch shots. I am hoping I can make some more good memories."

Piercy played one year at BYU and three years at San Diego State. He turned pro about a month ago and this will be his first Buy.com event.

At last week's Buick Open, Piercy missed the cut at the Monday qualifier by one stroke.

"I'm just excited," Piercy said. "I've waited a long time to get here.

"Golf is a funny game. You just have to ride your highs and get through the lows."