Trip Kuehne says he never saw a repeat of his 36-hole matchup with Tiger Woods in the final of the 1994 US Amateur. He doesn’t need it. He can even remember the details of the day, including the nap he took in the locker room between rounds.
At TPC Sawgrass, with his father on his bag, Kuehne made seven birdies in his first 13 holes to go 6 over Woods. So Woods did for him what he would do for so many others. He rallied to win the match, the first of his three straight US Amateur titles.
Woods was 18 at the time. Kuehne was 22. Despite the age difference, they knew each other well. Woods and his father, Earl, sometimes stayed with the Kuehnes when they traveled to tournaments, and Woods once carried Kuehne’s bag as a teammate in the Canon Cup, a prestigious amateur event now called the Wyndham Cup.
“I was probably the only person in the world who caddied,” Kuehne said on GOLF’s Subpar podcast co-hosts Colt Knost and Drew Stoltz.
After that match, the paths of the two men diverged. Woods continued to become. . . well, you know. Kuehne remains an amateur, has built a career in finance, played on three US Walker Cup teams and earned a start in the 2008 Masters by winning the 2007 Mid-Am at Bandon Dunes.
Kuehne has no regrets, but will admit three mistakes against Woods. The snooze was one. He was so relaxed that he slept in the dressing room after the morning round and went out flat for the afternoon. An exchange with his father also led to a key mis-clubbing and a bogey that helped put Woods back in the match. Kuehne’s third goof, by his account, was a poorly played layup on the par-5 9th hole that left him in the bunker. Another bogey. Footage of that shot and many others live in the ether.
Not that Kuehne ever saw it, except in his mind’s eye.
To hear Kuehne’s account of the match, the nap and more, you can check out the entire episode here.
