As for whether Tiger is as great a closer as the pundits claim, I really don’t see how Phil’s analysis seriously undermines the pundits’ argument. The fact is, Tiger has never blown a major tournament when he’s held a share of the 54-hole lead. Evidently, he lost the lead on three occasions, which means that on 11 of 14 occasions (79% of the time), he never lost the lead. That’s a tremendous achievement right there. Then, on the three occasions he lost the lead, he still stayed close enough to win the tournament in regulation or get into a playoff, which he subsequently won.

In this one respect, at least, it seems that Tiger can’t win: If he gets the 54-hole lead and loses, then of course people will call him a choker. If he gets the lead and then runs away with it, then it is denigrated as a hollow victory and the myth is advanced that Tiger doesn’t have any serious competition.

Say what you will, but the fact remains, Tiger’s 33 years old and has 14 majors. That’s really the only stat that matters.

The fact is, Tiger is probably no more clutch than any other golfer, he is just a lot better. That translates into more leads, more opportunities and more wins.