Tiger’s Climb About to Steepen
Jack Nicklaus said the majors were easier to win because a big part of the field did not believe they could, and were defeated from the start. Over his career, Tiger Woods has confirmed the Nicklaus philosophy as so many doubters have self destructed in his presence. But this year’s been different.
Let’s call Tiger’s first two events this year as tune-ups following his surgery. Since then, his line of finishes is: (Blue are majors, black are regular PGA Tour events)
1, 6t, 4, 8, 1, 6t, 1, MC, 1, 1, 2
See a pattern there? He’s won five of his last seven regular tour stops, but is 0 for 4 in the majors. Notice also the way the wins surround his failures in the majors. That makes you wonder how he could have it one week, then not a week or two later at the majors when it counts the most.
Perhaps Woods is now plagued by some doubt at the majors. Possibly his conservative game plans are too risk averse. Maybe two decades of grinding over putts dating back to his emergence as a superstar at age 15 has taken its toll. Perhaps the last three majors exposed the fact that Tiger’s never been a great wind and rain player.
Regardless, you’ve got to wonder if the climb up the mountain isn’t going to get a bit steeper from now on.
The Triple Major Guys
One of the biggest competitions in golf is for the second best player of the Tiger Woods Era. As it stands, four are tied with three majors, but Mickelson gets the nod based on his overall record. Still, whether it is right or not, the first one that breaks the tie with their fourth major will be considered second best by a large segment of the golf world. For the record, here is how they finished at the PGA: Els 6t, Harrington 10t, Singh 16t, Mickelson 73 (no t).
Minnesota’s Golf Fans
American golf fans, excluding those who yell “get in the hole”, are some of the best in the world. I was particularly impressed by the way the Minnesota fans took to Y.E. Yang, the smiling South Korean. In fact, I don’t know if Woods would have received a louder ovation on the final green if he had been the winner.
CBS = Commercial Broadcasting System
There is a saying in golf that the commercials really start on the back nine of a major on Sunday. Still, CBS was kind enough to occasionally interrupt the commercials for some golf. Part of the problem is that they think we have no interest in seeing players other than the two or three who are still in contention. Wrong. Although McIlroy, for example, wasn’t going to win, it would have been nice to see how he orchestrated his third place finish, his best in a major.
Garcia to Turn 30 Without a Major
Ten years ago Sergio “Mr. Scissors Kick” Garcia ignited the golf world with his play at the 1999 PGA. Although the 19 year old lost to Woods by a shot, golf fans were certain that a rivalry was born. A decade later, however, Garcia has managed three seconds and six other top fives, but no major titles as he heads into his 30s.
Hazeltine’s Driveable Par 4
I was against turning the 14th hole at Hazeltine into a driveable par 4 because seems like they are copying the USGA, and because that green looked way too big for that type of hole, it being so unlike Riviera’s 10th green. But the 14th proved to be the site of one of the two biggest shots in Y.E. Yang’s victory.
Hazeltine’s Answer to Augusta
Some huge scores have ruined the hopes of so many players at the water and wind guarded 12th at Augusta National. On Sunday the 8th at Hazeltine played the same role of spoiler as the field averaged over 3.4 shot on this water and wind guarded par 3. Padraig Harrington went from -6 to -1 thanks to an eight that included two shots into the lake. A group later the conservative playing Woods pulled his approach into the left bunker and made bogey, one of several miscues that cost him the title.
The South Korean’s Secret
The South Koreans obviously have something going for them besides their love of the game. Since Se Ri Pak opened the floodgates in 1998 , South Korean women have captured 10 of the next 46 majors. The latest, Eun-Hee Ji at the US Open, displayed that same relaxed demeanor that served Y.E. Yang so well in his duel with Tiger Woods. So, perhaps they have the mental game secret sauce that American pros would do well to emulate.
Time for Club Pros to Go
It’s a nice gesture to include 20 club pros in the PGA, but only two made the cut, and they finished 74th and 76th. At the same time golf is moving closer to becoming an Olympic sport. So let’s end the provincialism and get more of the World’s best into the field. Besides, the club pro have their own championship anyway.
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5 responses so far ↓
1 BD // Aug 18, 2009 at 5:42 am
Good stuff, Phil.
I don’t think Tiger’s problem was his putting, per se. Tiger putted great earlier in the week. Having heard Brad Faxon talking about this on Monday, I’m satisfied that the vagaries of the poa greens made it close to impossible for Tiger to cash in on his superiority in the putting dept.
I think what this championship demonstrated was the limits of Tiger’s sit-back-and-wait-for-the-rest-of-the-field-to-fold strategy. It was a good strategy that has served Tiger well over the years, but it’s hardly foolproof. Occasionally, another player who is within striking distance of the lead after 54 holes is going to slip through the cracks and actually manage to play OVER his head at the crucial time.
I think this loss will be about as tough as they come for Tiger (with the possible exception of the last Masters he was trying to win for “Pops”). I think it’ll be tough for him because he DID play well enough to win, but he went into defensive mode much too early (as I think you noted in one of your earlier posts). Going forward, he’s going to need to stick his neck out and try to put the field away even if he IS sitting on a modest lead going into Sunday.
As for Yang, he obviously earned this, and I wouldn’t take anything away from him. That said, whenever an unknown long-shot wins one these things, I really, really want them to back it up with some more wins in the ensuing years. I don’t think it lends any prestige to the event or the game for a relatively obscure player like Shaun Micheel to grab a major title and then go right back to being obscure again.
2 MikeZ // Aug 18, 2009 at 5:58 am
After Friday, I was still hopeful that someone (primarily Paddy) could still track down Tiger and make the 91st PGA at least a fight, but I was not optimistic about it. “When Tiger has a four-shot lead after two rounds in a major, that’s when he usually goes on to win by eight or ten (or more!)” I said.
But after he failed to increase his lead on Saturday, and in fact lost half of it, I had a feeling that this might finally be the time Tiger was tamed on a major Sunday. I told everyone I thought might care that this could be the Sunday when Tiger goes down (alas, I didn’t post those thoughts here, for the record). Still, I thought it would be Paddy.
While monitoring the action on my [name-brand mobile communications device] at a company picnic Sunday afternoon, I was mortified to see another snowman appear on defending champ’s scorecard. But when I saw that Yang had already caught Tiger, I thought, “That would do, as well.”
I tried not to get any more results before I could watch the DVR replay at home that night, but caught sight of Yang and the trophy on a TV at the health club (I don’t work out there, I just swim with my son!). Even knowing the outcome in advance, watching the final few holes that evening was thrilling. And I can’t get over the look on Tiger’s face when they zoomed in on him on 17 green while Yang was lining up his par putt for a two-stroke lead (he missed). Tiger looked frustrated, tired, angry, very tense. He was swearing and muttering to himself. I’ve never seen him look so un-composed. It was very telling, I thought.
It will be very interesting to see how the majors unfold next year. It’s not hard to imagine Tiger putting more and more pressure on himself as time slips past. The ground shifted in the golf world on Sunday. And the aftershocks may well be felt for years to come.
3 BD // Aug 18, 2009 at 6:47 am
Regarding who is “second best player” of the Woods Era, I’m not sure Mickelson has a clear edge over Vijay. Phil has a lot more top 5s in majors, but Vijay has won 9 European Tour events and was, in fact, #1 in the world at one point DURING the Woods Era.
4 MikeZ // Aug 18, 2009 at 7:58 am
Miscellaneous — I like the occasional driveable par-4. But I thought that in this case the “risk” half of the risk-reward equation didn’t seem quite high enough. From what I saw, players won’t hesitating to go for it. I didn’t get to watch a lot, but I didn’t see many bogeys or worse there. Players who hit errant drives were still able to save par pretty easily. Going for the green on a par-r should be a bigger risk.
Club pros — Should amateurs be barred from the Masters or the Opens? I think it was a good thing to cut the number down to 20, and maybe 10 would be even more appropriate. But I don’t think their presence detracts from the tournament at all. There’s always a possibility for a good Cinderella story, and this is their organization after all. And I love hearing the stories about what a thrill it is for some of them to play in a big-time event (and perhaps win a year’s pay in a week!). It’s part of the flavor of this event.
5 Phil Capelle // Aug 18, 2009 at 8:21 am
BD and Mike
Lots of thoughtful commentary as usual. I too like to see winners back up their victories and I don’t care much for one hit wonders, though in this case I may make an exception (he could win another, though). And next year will fun now that it looks like the chase to pass Nicklaus is not a forgone conclusion.
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