Tiger: Ugh.....I now feel bad

[recruitsreadtheseboards]

Anyone see any of his act yesterday? I now think the TW on the cap stands for Train Wreck. I now feel for the guy. I mean, you are not talking best in the world, you have already seen "best in the world" disintegrate in David Duval. Or Luke Donald. That is not unprecedented. Tiger Woods was perhaps "best of all time". Now? He is not just another golfer on tour. "Another golfer on tour" would be an inspired improvement. Tiger is bad. In all facets.

The 18th hole yesterday was it. Any of us part time hackers can appreciate it. In the fairway on a Par 5. A fairway wood (metal) in hand, likely a 3 wood. You address the ball, set up and whack......the ball gets maybe 7 feet off the ground, nosedives then kills every worm, insect and grub patrolling the parth.......to make matters worse, there is this insipid bunker on 18 and the ball finds the bottom of it, maybe 130 yards away. Tiger Woods. 130 yard worm burning 3 wood finding a fairway bunker. This isn't you or me. This isn't "well you don't play it from the same tees" or "you don't play the same courses" this was a basic 2nd shot on a Par 5, a tough Par 5, but a 3 wood duffed, barely leaving the ground and traveling 130 yards to a sandy grave.

He goes on to bogey, mere mortals would have taken a 7 or 8, and "saved" it for an 80. I really think he should just retire. Playing more golf is not solving this. He needs to retire, or at least step totally back, go crawling back to the people who he has blown off (Hank Haney for one) and beg for forgiveness and ask for help. His own ego has been as destructive to his career as his back and knee.

 

[Pitt79]

What I hate the most is the coverage he gets! Am I the only one sick of opening a sports page today and seeing a big picture of Tiger and a headline talking about him struggling and no mention of the actual good players? Tiger sucking is not news, it's the norm now. Tiger has become like the Oakland Raiders or Washington Redskins, a full trophy case, but currently the image of ineptitude. He's not a story anymore. We know he sucks and nobody thinks he will contend.

 

[pitt-girl]

Anyone see any of his act yesterday? I now think the TW on the cap stands for Train Wreck. I now feel for the guy. I mean, you are not talking best in the world, you have already seen "best in the world" disintegrate in David Duval. Or Luke Donald. That is not unprecedented. Tiger Woods was perhaps "best of all time". Now? He is not just another golfer on tour. "Another golfer on tour" would be an inspired improvement. Tiger is bad. In all facets.

The 18th hole yesterday was it. Any of us part time hackers can appreciate it. In the fairway on a Par 5. A fairway wood (metal) in hand, likely a 3 wood. You address the ball, set up and whack......the ball gets maybe 7 feet off the ground, nosedives then kills every worm, insect and grub patrolling the parth.......to make matters worse, there is this insipid bunker on 18 and the ball finds the bottom of it, maybe 130 yards away. Tiger Woods. 130 yard worm burning 3 wood finding a fairway bunker. This isn't you or me. This isn't "well you don't play it from the same tees" or "you don't play the same courses" this was a basic 2nd shot on a Par 5, a tough Par 5, but a 3 wood duffed, barely leaving the ground and traveling 130 yards to a sandy grave.

He goes on to bogey, mere mortals would have taken a 7 or 8, and "saved" it for an 80. I really think he should just retire. Playing more golf is not solving this. He needs to retire, or at least step totally back, go crawling back to the people who he has blown off (Hank Haney for one) and beg for forgiveness and ask for help. His own ego has been as destructive to his career as his back and knee.

Recruits - watched most of the coverage from 6 PM - on. I actually think you have a point about Tiger. Luckily, I've never been an addict in any way, but isn't one of the AA steps to atone and ask forgiveness? I also too think he should step away, but not step away like he already has what - 6?, 8?, 10? - times already. I mean as in physically doing something else with his life, preferably something altruistic - donating time and energy to someone or something in need. Perhaps by totally erasing his mind he could obtain a clean slate and return. Golfers in their 40"s can still do extremely well. Hiring different swing coaches and taking a break seems only to be making it worse. But I think the chances of this are less than 1%. As you said, his ego would never, ever allow him the chance to break free.

 

[JS School]

Recruits - watched most of the coverage from 6 PM - on. I actually think you have a point about Tiger. Luckily, I've never been an addict in any way, but isn't one of the AA steps to atone and ask forgiveness? I also too think he should step away, but not step away like he already has what - 6?, 8?, 10? - times already. I mean as in physically doing something else with his life, preferably something altruistic - donating time and energy to someone or something in need. Perhaps by totally erasing his mind he could obtain a clean slate and return. Golfers in their 40"s can still do extremely well. Hiring different swing coaches and taking a break seems only to be making it worse. But I think the chances of this are less than 1%. As you said, his ego would never, ever allow him the chance to break free.

It will be interesting to see how he handles this. Ballesteros pretty much kept on playing, Ian Baker-Finch retired. Duval and Sandy Lyle sort of semi-retired. It's possible he could recover to some extent, like Westwood did, but it's doubtful he will ever be anywhere near as dominant as he once was. Regardless of what happens, though, if he handles this with grace and humility it may go a long way in improving his image.

I didn't care for it when the networks kept showing him when he was playing mediocre and not in contention, but I honestly can't blame them for making a story of him now. This is a pretty fascinating story considering how great he once was and how awful he has become.

 

[pittdan77]

The guy is still a draw and is still getting paid. As long as he wants to keep showing up, he'll keep getting paid by sponsors. Until the viewing public ignores him, that won't change.

 

[recruitsreadtheseboards]

The guy is still a draw and is still getting paid. As long as he wants to keep showing up, he'll keep getting paid by sponsors. Until the viewing public ignores him, that won't change.

That's really insightful commentary. He is not going to keep on "getting paid". When was the last time did you see commercials starring him? Sure, he has Nike contracts, but that too is going to dry out. And right now he is a story because of who he is and why it is such a trainwreck. Soon......as this becomes the norm, it will no longer be an issue.

What I don't feel bad is for those mouth breathing cretins, Tiger Woods fans who just mindlessly follow him around and scream TIGAAAAAA! at every swing.....shut up people.

 

[Pghfan]

Figures, just when I start liking the guy, he plays like this. Golf needs a villain, I'm sure the usga is rooting like heck that he figures this out and can compete. Bubba Watson and Sergio are annoying But not enough to evoke hatred, Monty was fun to hate but he is old. No other colorful characters in golf We need a new Elkington, someone that actually has some character

 

[chethejet]

Jack is hands down the greatest golfer ever. No contest. Secondly, Tiger's game was brute force on the tee and had great touch on the greens. Both are gone. His swing path is much different now and he will struggle with accuracy and consistency. Quite frankly this is so predictable once his body became muscle bound and perhaps some of mamas little helpers along the way.

 

[Panther Parrothead]

Anyone see any of his act yesterday? I now think the TW on the cap stands for Train Wreck. I now feel for the guy. I mean, you are not talking best in the world, you have already seen "best in the world" disintegrate in David Duval. Or Luke Donald. That is not unprecedented. Tiger Woods was perhaps "best of all time". Now? He is not just another golfer on tour. "Another golfer on tour" would be an inspired improvement. Tiger is bad. In all facets.

The 18th hole yesterday was it. Any of us part time hackers can appreciate it. In the fairway on a Par 5. A fairway wood (metal) in hand, likely a 3 wood. You address the ball, set up and whack......the ball gets maybe 7 feet off the ground, nosedives then kills every worm, insect and grub patrolling the parth.......to make matters worse, there is this insipid bunker on 18 and the ball finds the bottom of it, maybe 130 yards away. Tiger Woods. 130 yard worm burning 3 wood finding a fairway bunker. This isn't you or me. This isn't "well you don't play it from the same tees" or "you don't play the same courses" this was a basic 2nd shot on a Par 5, a tough Par 5, but a 3 wood duffed, barely leaving the ground and traveling 130 yards to a sandy grave.

He goes on to bogey, mere mortals would have taken a 7 or 8, and "saved" it for an 80. I really think he should just retire. Playing more golf is not solving this. He needs to retire, or at least step totally back, go crawling back to the people who he has blown off (Hank Haney for one) and beg for forgiveness and ask for help. His own ego has been as destructive to his career as his back and knee.

Sorry, but there are people whom I feel badly for, and Tiger ain't one of 'em. When karma strikes, it's a cruel mistress - and who should know more about mistresses than Tiger?

He's still got his mega-money and his pick of women. Life's still quite good for Tiger.

 

[Pitt79]

His swing path is much different now and he will struggle with accuracy and consistency.

I have golfed on and off for 25 years, and admitedly am a pretty bad golfer, I shot an 86 once, best ever and only time under 90. What I will never understand about Tiger, is why, back when he was dominating the sport and blowing people away would he be constantly changing his swing and his coaches? Why mess with a good, great thing?

 

[Panther Parrothead]

I have golfed on and off for 25 years, and admitedly am a pretty bad golfer, I shot an 86 once, best ever and only time under 90. What I will never understand about Tiger, is why, back when he was dominating the sport and blowing people away would he be constantly changing his swing and his coaches? Why mess with a good, great thing?

I could be wrong, but someone said that his physical ailments were the root cause of his changing his swing(s), and now he's in a bad cycle where he can't get it back.

Similar but different: when St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Dizzy Dean was pitching in the 1937 All Star Game, and a line-drive up the middle broke his big toe. This caused him to modify his throwing motion, and he was never the same pitcher afterward.

 

[Pitt79]

I don't know? I don't thinmk he had physical ailments the 1st time he changed his swing?

 

[LeftCoastPanther]

Figures, just when I start liking the guy, he plays like this. Golf needs a villain, I'm sure the usga is rooting like heck that he figures this out and can compete. Bubba Watson and Sergio are annoying But not enough to evoke hatred, Monty was fun to hate but he is old. No other colorful characters in golf We need a new Elkington, someone that actually has some character

I agree, golf needs a villain to make it more interesting and it seems Dustin Johnson won’t become that guy despite being a total scumbag.

 

[Panther Parrothead]

I don't know? I don't thinmk he had physical ailments the 1st time he changed his swing?

You could be right. I'd heard that his knee was acting-up before he went public with it, but I'm just repeating the speculation of others.....

 

[Gregory25]

I think his first swing changes were out of boredom to be honest. He played a power fade that he controlled very well but wasn't that great at shaping shots. The swing changes gave him more shots in his bag and he still dominated but eventually he didn't have a reliable miss. From there, he developed bad habits acquired from learning how to manufacture all his new shots. At this point, he can't stop himself from changing the level of his upper body during the swing. In baseball terms. He jams himself on 80% of the swings he takes. Tiger now has the pro version of Charles Barkley's golf swing.

 

[paulbl99]

Anyone see any of his act yesterday? I now think the TW on the cap stands for Train Wreck. I now feel for the guy. I mean, you are not talking best in the world, you have already seen "best in the world" disintegrate in David Duval. Or Luke Donald. That is not unprecedented. Tiger Woods was perhaps "best of all time". Now? He is not just another golfer on tour. "Another golfer on tour" would be an inspired improvement. Tiger is bad. In all facets.

The 18th hole yesterday was it. Any of us part time hackers can appreciate it. In the fairway on a Par 5. A fairway wood (metal) in hand, likely a 3 wood. You address the ball, set up and whack......the ball gets maybe 7 feet off the ground, nosedives then kills every worm, insect and grub patrolling the parth.......to make matters worse, there is this insipid bunker on 18 and the ball finds the bottom of it, maybe 130 yards away. Tiger Woods. 130 yard worm burning 3 wood finding a fairway bunker. This isn't you or me. This isn't "well you don't play it from the same tees" or "you don't play the same courses" this was a basic 2nd shot on a Par 5, a tough Par 5, but a 3 wood duffed, barely leaving the ground and traveling 130 yards to a sandy grave.

He goes on to bogey, mere mortals would have taken a 7 or 8, and "saved" it for an 80. I really think he should just retire. Playing more golf is not solving this. He needs to retire, or at least step totally back, go crawling back to the people who he has blown off (Hank Haney for one) and beg for forgiveness and ask for help. His own ego has been as destructive to his career as his back and knee.

When you go bunker, bunker, bunker then finally miss a short putt you know it's not your day..

I'm thinking he is nuts for completely changing his swing again but who knows what is is his head....from going to challenging to become the greatest player ever to this is just astounding..
Although not seeing a lot of tournament golf in person, have been fortunate going back to a youngster of seeing Jack, Tiger and Arnie play in their prime. Jack's the best ..case closed but Tiger was making a run of it.

If he would stop goofing up his swing I think he could come back....And if he is playing well there always is Augusta.
But , doubt it.
Too bad; it is always great to see greatness happening and a once unthinkable accomplishment of beating Jack's 18 was standing in site,,,, , but he sure did screw the pooch....so to speak

 

[NCPitt]

That's really insightful commentary. He is not going to keep on "getting paid". When was the last time did you see commercials starring him? Sure, he has Nike contracts, but that too is going to dry out. And right now he is a story because of who he is and why it is such a trainwreck. Soon......as this becomes the norm, it will no longer be an issue.

What I don't feel bad is for those mouth breathing cretins, Tiger Woods fans who just mindlessly follow him around and scream TIGAAAAAA! at every swing.....shut up people.

"As of February 2015, Woods had endorsement deals with the following companies:

• Nike Golf, which signed Woods in 1996 and built its golf division around Woods.
• Rolex, the watch makers.
• MusclePharm, a sports nutrition brand.
• Kowa, a diversified Japanese company whose pharmaceutical products include a pain medicine for which Woods does ads that air in Japan.
• NetJets, which offers fractional ownerships of private jets.
• Upper Deck, the sports cards and collectibles company.
• Tatweer: The Tiger Woods Dubai, a luxury golf course development in Dubai."

From ESPN (Feb/2015):

"Despite having his worst year on the course, Tiger Woods still made the most money in golf in 2014, according to the Golf Digest 50, an annual ranking of those making the most in the game.

Woods earned $55,110,775 in 2014, according to the magazine, with endorsements making up an astounding 98.8 percent of his take...

Woods, who Golf Digest says has earned $1.37 billion since going pro in 1996, has picked up his endorsement activity of late.

He signed a deal with motorcycle and scooter company Hero MotoCorp in December, which is worth at least $6 million annually and a deal with MusclePharm replaced a deal with a company called Fuse, which went bust and failed to generate the return for Tiger he hoped for. Last month, Woods signed a deal with Sol Republic headphones.

 

[wbrpanther]

The guy is still a draw and is still getting paid. As long as he wants to keep showing up, he'll keep getting paid by sponsors. Until the viewing public ignores him, that won't change.

Tough to ignore someone that they shove down your throat. And I'm not so sure the viewing public wants to see much of Tiger anymore, excepting for his most ardent fans.

 

[King Of All Message Boards]

One of the reasons he went to Foley was because Foley was supposed to be an expert in biomechanics. That is the point at which he changed his swing for physical reasons. When he went from Harmon to Haney it had nothing to do with his body. Most people including me think his swing under Harmon was better but his results under Haney were very impressive too.

 

[1Skeets]

Too many steroids that effectively tore down the rest of his body. Should have stuck with Butch Harmon. His swing and game was much better with him
Can't say that I'll shead any tears... Pompous arrogant A hole
Great role model slamming clubs and cursing

 

[RoguePanther]

He needs to go back to doing coke and banging ho's. He effectively got his nads cut off by getting caught and crawling back with his tail between his legs, and hasn't been the same since. He lost his MoJo. They say dance with who brung ya, and with Tiger it was the over the top, no one can touch me lifestyle and attitude. I say get back to it Tiger.

 

[Pghfan]

I never understood why they didn't rip his ass all those years, they acted like he was a good guy or something? Anybody else acting like him, cursing, throwing clubs, having his thug caddies stealing people's camera's would have been LYNCHED.

Because he did more for golf than any person in the history of the game.

 

[CaptainSidneyReilly]

I did post many years ago, it looks like the pressure Tiger often had on himself was released when he could relax with other women before and during his big wins that allowed him to concentrate and focus only on his game.

Once he married and this kind of relief was now forbidden but continued he put himself into a position he could no longer maintain his secret needs that was part of his success, in contrast to his public image as a family man.

After the Holiday Domestic Showdown and all the advice from his inner circle, Tiger did the moral right thing to change himself and that changed his game.

In time, he started to blame others from his caddy to his advisers and started to change his game, swing, as his body started to breakdown from his own pressure he continued to place on his knees, legs, and arms.

Tiger's game is now as inconsistent as his life and that has not comeback like he had in the past, and others have developed using his own conditioning, practicing, and weight training workouts like he developed and improved his and now their own games. The younger competition has caught up and if not passed him by right now.

I agree he misses the guidance of his Father as well. Few know it, but the strain on twisting ones body that is demanded by the game of golf that requires countless swings, bending, and knees jerking development of coordination with great focus and determination adds up taking a toll over time.

Like any sport and contests of skills it is a young men and women's game. Few win more Tournaments later in life than when they were younger.

Once you hit 40s and 50s and you may be more mentally focused but your body starts its decline, and it gets tougher.

Still, what Tiger accomplished and how he changed the game, and still brings great interests, sponsors, and following bigger than ever for the World of Golf.

Yet, the economics of Golf Courses Country Clubs and Golfing has come under bigger pressures too in America but growing leaps and bounds in China, India, and South America. Just like it did decades ago in South Africa, Japan, and South Korea.

 

[Jpripper88]

Because he did more for golf than any person in the history of the game.

Exactly. He has made golf more money than every other golfer combined. Not even close.

 

[DonP74]

Because he did more for golf than any person in the history of the game.

I'd vote for Latrobe's Arnold Palmer if you can appreciate his92 world wide wins up until he was about 59.

 

[King Of All Message Boards]

Palmer brought golf to the masses but the original statement was correct. Tiger's done more for the game than anyone ever.

 

[pitt-girl]

I did post many years ago, it looks like the pressure Tiger often had on himself was released when he could relax with other women before and during his big wins that allowed him to concentrate and focus only on his game.

Once he married and this kind of relief was now forbidden but continued he put himself into a position he could no longer maintain his secret needs that was part of his success, in contrast to his public image as a family man.

After the Holiday Domestic Showdown and all the advice from his inner circle, Tiger did the moral right thing to change himself and that changed his game.

In time, he started to blame others from his caddy to his advisers and started to change his game, swing, as his body started to breakdown from his own pressure he continued to place on his knees, legs, and arms.

Tiger's game is now as inconsistent as his life and that has not comeback like he had in the past, and others have developed using his own conditioning, practicing, and weight training workouts like he developed and improved his and now their own games. The younger competition has caught up and if not passed him by right now.

I agree he misses the guidance of his Father as well. Few know it, but the strain on twisting ones body that is demanded by the game of golf that requires countless swings, bending, and knees jerking development of coordination with great focus and determination adds up taking a toll over time.

Like any sport and contests of skills it is a young men and women's game. Few win more Tournaments later in life than when they were younger.

Once you hit 40s and 50s and you may be more mentally focused but your body starts its decline, and it gets tougher.

Still, what Tiger accomplished and how he changed the game, and still brings great interests, sponsors, and following bigger than ever for the World of Golf.

Yet, the economics of Golf Courses Country Clubs and Golfing has come under bigger pressures too in America but growing leaps and bounds in China, India, and South America. Just like it did decades ago in South Africa, Japan, and South Korea.

I still vividly remember Mr. Pitt-girl looking at me when news broke that Tiger was getting married and saying, "That's it. He'll never break Jack's record." I scoffed, but it looks like he was right. Something changed. Be it his swing or age or the mental part of his game, something changed.

 

[CaptainSidneyReilly]

I still vividly remember Mr. Pitt-girl looking at me when news broke that Tiger was getting married and saying, "That's it. He'll never break Jack's record." I scoffed, but it looks like he was right. Something changed. Be it his swing or age or the mental part of his game, something changed.

Tiger was doing things other Golfers did nit do as far as training and practicing. For example, he once practiced punting just before it got dark, an sure enough the game after being tied took a long time to complete and went deep into the dusk time, and tiger pulled out the win.

Once others and younger Golfers started to do the same things they caught up to him on a competitive level, and after 40, it is much tougher as younger players keep coming up.

The Marriages & Affairs and his massive swings took a toll on his mental abilities and physical and that can change any man at any time. Tiger is still a Billionaire and still did much for the game of Golf. I admired him back when and I'll admire him now.