Faldo not worried about Woods

Nick Faldo says he's "as keen as ever" about playing golf, but the fact is he's searching for the success he once knew.

As the 64th and last seed, he's scheduled to meet No. 1 seed Tiger Woods in a first-round match this Wednesday at the La Costa Resort in Carlsbad, Calif.

"My first goal is to win a tournament again," Faldo says, "and the next most important thing is progressing toward the majors."

Faldo slipped into the match-play tournament when Greg Turner finished tied for third at a tournament in Australia. Had Turner finished third alone, he would have gotten the 64th spot. At the same time, Faldo missed the cut at a tournament in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

Faldo's last victory on the PGA Tour came at the 1997 Nissan Open.

To correct his game, he has changed teachers, going from David Leadbetter to Chip Koehlke.

Leadbetter is internationally known and credited with making Faldo the No. 1 player in the world for 81 weeks (1993-94).

Koehlke is the lead instructor at the Faldo Institute, a golf school at the Marriott Resort in Orlando. Faldo says his selection of Koehlke is not connected to his work with the Faldo Institute.

"Chip and I get along very well," Faldo says. "He's very good at the mechanics of the swing and the psychology of playing the game."

Faldo says he left Leadbetter not because he was tired of hearing the same old things, but because he was hearing new things that he couldn't make work.

"I was trying to move my body faster," Faldo explains, "and I got out of sync with my swing."

Leadbetter has said that he thinks Faldo's problems are more with concentration than swing mechanics.

Faldo, 41, is 10 years removed from his first victory in The Masters. In fact, he says he hardly thinks about it unless someone mentions the anniversary.

"Augusta brings back great memories, and that's good for a positive attitude," he says.

Aside from the competition there are positives in his businesses. He has a long-term agreement with Adams Golf. He designed some wedges introduced this year. Another Faldo Institute is being built in Palm Springs, Calif., with plans for others.