Realistically, with more than half the season already on the books and Tiger's history of playing on a limited schedule, we may not see Tiger more than a half-dozen times before the end of the year. After watching Tiger play this weekend at the Bridgestone Invitational, one can only wonder how many more times he'll actually play before the season officially ends in October. With one major event left (the PGA Championship in Atlanta) next week and the Fed-Ex Cup playoffs beginning in late August, don't expect to see him very much from then on. Presently Tiger has not accumulated enough points to even participate in the Fed-Ex playoffs. He currently sits in 128th position needing to be at 125th or better to join the fields for the 4 tournament $10 million winner-take-all series.
If he plays well in the PGA championship next week he could gain the necessary points to advance to the playoffs.
And let's face it. Golf is not the same without Tiger. Anyone who says that they didn't miss watching Tiger play over the last few years is not being truthful or at best just being a Tiger-hater. The young guns that have burst upon the scene have played admirably, but none of them have come close to showing the dominance or consistency that Tiger had when he was on his game. Equally, it's hard for me to listen to the media as they make an assertive effort to shred this man on every aspect of his life and his golf game. While I agree that Tiger is the sole one blame for the predicament that he is in, it only saddens me to see the pleasure the media gets from kicking this man while he's down.
While I'd love to see him make a strong comeback, I'm afraid this year will end pretty much just like last year with Tiger having a mediocre season. There is really not time for much else. One can easily blame the struggles with his game on all the off-course issues that he's faced since November 2009. The fact is, even if he hadn't gone through this whole ordeal, making a major swing overhaul would have taken some time to complete. The off-course issues coupled with the injuries have only made it worse. One thing is for sure with golf -- you have to play continuously to get in and stay in a groove. He looked tentative at best this weekend. The one thing that elevated him for so many years in the past was his high level of confidence. When you are going through a major swing change it's very hard to trust your swing. When you hit a couple of loose shots under pressure, along with missing a few short putts, it only increases the lack of confidence in your swing.
One will never question Tiger's work ethic; everyone knows he puts in the work. I can only hope that moving forward he will surround himself with people who have no financial interest in his well being or he could end up following the same transgressions that got him jammed up the first time. When everyone in your camp is on the payroll, no one is going to question you out of fear of losing their job. This scenario plays itself out in many celebrity accounts of misfortune. Sad thing is they all saw it coming, but were too afraid to say anything. It's been said that: "That which doesn't kill you can only make you stronger" Let's hope so in Tiger's case.
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Listen, he's pretty much done as a dominant force. He may get his head on straight eventually and win another major or two, but he won't be the world number 1 again. There's a lot of great, young talent that has come up and hopefully will enthrall people who once only watched for Tiger. Regardless, people who are hoping Tiger comes back into 2002 form are going to be disappointed.
On the one hand, the PGA Tour was more interesting when Tiger was at his best. But even then, I and a lot of people, I think, had a hard time cheering for him. All the cursing on the course and the tossing of clubs and generally unpleasant behavior, as well as his cold and steely demeanor made him tough to root for. I'd point out to my son just how creative Woods was in shotmaking and how dominant he was, but then Woods would pound his driver on the ground on the next tee after a bad shot -- the exact thing I tell my son not to do on the course.
So, should we root for a comeback by someone we don't actually admire? And I've never liked the idea of villains in sport. I think it's kind of unhealthy to root for certain people to lose. Like the whole anti-Lebron stuff this past year. I think cheering for people to fail generates some bad karma or something.
I hope for Woods' sake, he becomes a great dad and finds some peace in his life. I'm just not sure how to think about this comeback.
However, winning has an everlasting, irresistable appeal, and Woods' fans will return in droves if he recaptures his form. It's part of all sports fans' inherent shallowness.
But your parallel of Michael Jordon to Tiger woods was striking...M.J. use to be a regular at a casino near my town. After seeing him and his entourage there several times, I finally got the courage to approach him. And yes, I am aware that celebrities sometimes tire of being "bothered" by their fans, so I tried to time it with some respect for his privacy. After meeting him, I was really disappointed. He's cold and aloof, and not nearly what someone might expect. And from some things that I've read about him, I'm hardly the only person with this view. Michael Jordon wears his arrogance as if it were a cologne. As a childhood hero of mine, I always wished to meet him - now I wish I hadn't.
I always play my best in tourneys and seem to make the clutch shots in the face of eminent disaster whereas, on an afternoon with friends, into the trees and a bogey doesn't mean much.