Meeting of minds on a lofty summit

TENNIS/Roger Federer and Tiger Woods: Johnny Wattersonon the bonds of friendship, support and mutual understanding that link two great competitors

When Roger Federer beat Andy Roddick 6-2, 4-6, 7-5, 6-1 to win last year's US Open, his third in succession and the ninth major of his career, his new pal Tiger Woods was sitting in the front row.

Federer would soon win his 10th title at the Australian Open, taking a step closer to Pete Sampras' record of 14 majors, a step closer to being the best tennis player in history.

After the match Woods and Federer cracked open two bottles of Dom Pérignon in the locker room, the Swiss player caressing the familiar trophy.

The two were in their element, sharing moments that perhaps only a few other transcendent athletes could ever begin to understand. The been-there-done-that club for double-digit major wins amounts to only nine individuals.

In golf, Woods sits alongside Jack Nicklaus (18) and Walter Hagen (11). In tennis, Federer sits alongside Bill Tilden (10), Bjorn Borg (11), Rod Laver (11), Roy Emerson (12) and Sampras.

Since that US Open win, Woods and Federer have become even closer friends, texting each other about progress on course and court, keeping each other informed of their relentless rewriting of the history of their games.

Two months after Flushing Meadows, Federer turned up at the HSBC Champions tournament in Shanghai and followed Woods for a few holes inside the ropes, the bond once again a deep mutual respect and understanding of how each is trying to reshape the landscape.

"Roger Federer came out today to watch you," Woods was told after the round at Shanghai.

"Yeah, that guy is all right. Roger is a great guy," replied Woods. "We've become pretty good friends and it's great of him to come out here and watch and support. It's special. He's getting ready for a tournament here on Sunday. He starts Sunday and he's going to go back out right now. It's nice for him to come out.

"Did you know he was going to come out?" Woods was then asked. "Yeah, we talked about it. Roger is one of my friends, so it's nice to see him out here following and watching. More importantly, it's nice to see him out here because he's obviously getting ready for his event on Sunday, and nice of him to take some time out to come and watch me smash it around a little bit.

"But more importantly, we've gotten to know each other, and it's not too often that you can relate to someone going through certain things, and we both can. It's nice to be able to talk to someone like that."

Woods now has 12 majors, Federer 10. This year, Woods has won three times on the PGA tour, Federer three times on the ATP tour. Woods has stacked up dozens of records chasing the Nicklaus mark of 18 majors; Federer has done the same seeking to supplant Pete Sampras as the most decorated player in the game.

Woods is 31 years old and has amassed $70 million in prize money; Federer is 25 and has won over $31 million in his seven years as a professional. Both are number one in their sports and redefining the meaning of success.

"We could relate very much to one another. We have a lot of expectations from everybody, so we have a lot of common ground," says Federer. "It's good that we kind of know each other and can talk to each other about it."

These summer months throw the two again into the spotlight. Federer's claims on the French Open title again perished on the rock of Rafael Nadal, while Woods chased Angel Cabrera for the final round at Oakmont, but also came up short, finishing second to the Argentinean.

This week, Federer seeks his fifth Wimbledon title in a row, which if he were to achieve it would put him alongside the legendary Borg, take him closer to the Sampras record and reignite his ambition of holding all four Grand Slams at the same time, something Woods has already achieved in golf.

But in tennis only two men have accomplished the feat - the American Don Budge in 1938 and the Australian Rod Laver in 1962 and 1969.

Ten days after Wimbledon, Woods will arrive with his bag at Carnoustie for the British Open, a tournament he hopes to win for the third successive year and the fourth time. He is the favourite at 5 to 2, the next-closest challengers being rated no better than 20 to 1 chances.

Federer is almost unbackable as a 2 to 5 favourite to win at Wimbledon - Nadal the closest to him at 11 to 2.

To compare the two is not to measure them against each other, but to share in the sense of privilege of watching them assemble their strings of major wins into something bigger and even more impressive.

For Woods and Federer, an Open or Wimbledon title is simply another block in the cathedrals they are building within their sports.

While most players aspire to winning a major because it is in itself the pinnacle of the sport, these two have had to redraw the peaks themselves and set about conquering them.

It is no surprise Woods has also built up a close friendship with another athlete, basketball's Michael Jordan, who compelled people to watch him play with the Chicago Bulls. They did watch because they knew they would hardly see another like him in their lifetimes. The man could float.

"I'm shocked myself how well it's been going the last three or four years," said Federer recently. "Being not only compared to former great tennis players, but now especially to other great athletes over all sports. It's just really nice."

He is a different breed of 21st-century athlete and in that respect entirely different from the global and occasionally bland product Woods has become off the golf course.

"I'm very in-house," Federer once said. Occasionally, he brings his fitness trainer, Pierre Paganini, and physiotherapist, Pavel Kovac, on the road; his girlfriend of four years, Mirka Vavrinec, is his publicist; and his parents, Robert and Lynette, were his agents until he joined IMG.

He's an old-school throwback and is considered the most versatile player in the game. At the moment he has no coach, having parted with Tony Roche this year.

"He has a game that can sort of beat different guys different ways," said Andre Agassi. "He does everything really good, and a few things really great."

In the way that Woods has power off the tee and a remarkable putting touch on the fastest of greens, so too does Federer have a classic one-handed backhand and a forehand that can boom or feather balls as well as a mental toughness that improves his game as the pressure increases.

For Woods, that mental toughness arrived at an early age under the guidance of his strong-willed late father, Earl, but for the Federer it was a facet of his personality that developed with him later in life and after some years of fragility and uncontrolled temper.

Woods appeared on the Mike Douglas show aged two, putting with Bob Hope. He shot 48 for nine holes aged three and was featured in Golf Digest aged five.

He won the Optimist International Junior tournament when he was eight, nine, 12, 13, 14 and 15 and a year later played in his first professional tournament, the Nissan Los Angeles Open. He knows no other life than that in front of a camera.

Federer started playing tennis when he was eight and was the best junior in the world 10 years later. But his parents' sane and unexploitative support of his talent encouraged rather than thrust Federer's career forward. As a result, he may also be the most urbane and cultured "phenom" in history.

He has now maybe seven years to build his career into one that is indisputably the best in history, while Woods has longer to change the face of golf. But they walk forward as equals exploring and exposing corners of the golf and tennis that we never even knew existed.

Johnny Watterson will be reporting from Wimbledon throughout the 2007 Championships, starting this Monday.

Men's Singles

Roger Federer (1) - The Swiss maestro faces a series of Russians beginning with 85th-ranked Teimuraz Gabashvili. While Gabashvili is relatively unknown, Marat Safin, the former world number one, offers the possibility of a mouthwatering third-round clash while Dmitry Tursunov could stand in his way in the fourth.

Rafael Nadal (2) - Mardy Fish offers a tough first-round examination for the Spanish claycourt king, but then things look quite comfortable for the first week. Russian Mikhail Youzhny, the 14th seed, can play breathtaking tennis and could face Nadal in the fourth round.

Andy Roddick (3) - The American slugger would have hoped to be in the other half to his nemesis Federer, but is seeded to meet the Swiss in the semi-final. Roddick faces a tricky opener against his compatriot Justin Gimelstob, but it should be plain sailing then until a possible fourth-round serving-fest against the Croat Ivan Ljubicic.

Novak Djokovic (4) - The fast-rising Serb could set up a repeat of his French Open semi-final against Nadal if he negotiates five rounds. But before that is a possible, he will surely have a third-round meeting with Ivo Karlovic, the unseeded Croatian whose monster serve makes him a real danger.

Women's Singles

Justine Henin (1) - The Belgian should have few headaches in the first three rounds. Her first real test might be in the fourth round, where she could meet the Swiss Patty Schnyder, and things hot up with a projected quarter-final against former champion Serena Williams.

Maria Sharapova (2) - Sharapova's gaze will already have fallen on the fourth round, where the three-time winner Venus Williams lurks. Should she come through that, the Russian is looking at a quarter-final against her compatriot Svetlana Kuznetsova and a semi-final against Amelie Mauresmo.

Jelena Jankovic (3) - The Serb has been the most consistent woman this season. She is a prospective semi-final opponent for Henin, but first would have to get past the likes of Czech Lucie Safarova and Australian Samantha Stosur.

Amelie Mauresmo (4) - Last year's winner has at least avoided the same half of the draw as Safarova, who beat her at the Australian and French Opens this year. The first three rounds look comfortable, but a fourth-round tie with the Czech Nicole Vaidisova would crank up the pressure. And Sharapova could block her path in the semis.

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