Woods faces chase for majors at Winged Foot
MAMARONECK, N.Y. >> The older he gets, the more difficult it gets for Tiger Woods.
He is one victory away from setting the PGA Tour career record, and it’s been that way since January.
Every major he plays this year is a chance to tie the mark for the most titles in each one. He missed out on a fifth PGA Championship victory last month. He goes for No. 4 in the U.S. Open this week at Winged Foot. He gets a shot at a sixth green jacket at the Masters in November.
“I think it gets harder to win as we all age,” Woods responded to a query about records getting harder to achieve the closer a player gets to them. “I think that when you’re in your prime, in your peak years, you have to take advantage of those opportunities so then when you get to the all-time marks, you have that opportunity.”
It doesn’t figure to get any easier at Winged Foot, the first major that Woods missed the cut as a pro. It was a month after his father died, and Woods said Tuesday in retrospect that he spent more time grieving than preparing and it showed that week.
He returned a few weeks ago for a practice round with Justin Thomas and while the course was soft, Woods thought it was ready that day for the U.S. Open.
His opinion didn’t change when he arrived over the weekend.
“I think it’s right up there next to Oakmont and I think Carnoustie as far as just sheer difficulty without even doing anything to it,” Woods said.
He is 18-over par in the six rounds he has played at Winged Foot (including the 1997 PGA Championship), 6 over in his one appearance at Oakmont (runner-up) and 3 over in his 12 rounds at Carnoustie for the British Open.
“Those three golf courses, they can host major championships without ever doing anything to them,” he said.