USA TODAY International Edition
Tiger changing ways to avoid burnout
Seven events in nine weeks take toll on golfer
NASSAU, Bahamas – Tiger Woods was too good for his own good this year.
Quickly surpassing his limited expectations in the first quarter of 2018 and realizing his fused back could hold up to the rigors of practicing for and playing a full season on the PGA Tour, Woods pieced together a game that put him in contention more times than not.
He played well enough to earn a spot in the World Golf ChampionshipsBridgestone Invitational, a week he otherwise would have rested; wound up playing in all four FedExCup Playoffs events; and made 18 starts on Tour, the most since he played 19 in 2012. With the good came the bad. Woods played seven events in nine weeks, the highlights being his win in the Tour Championship, his 80th on Tour and first since 2013, and his runner-up finish in the PGA Championship.
But all the golf and the stifling heat that met players on the first tee in most of those events took a toll. By the time Woods reached the Ryder Cup in France, he was spent and went 0-4-0 as the USA was routed by Europe.
“I was not physically prepared to play that much golf at the end of the year,” Woods said ahead of Thursday’s start in the Hero World Challenge. “It was just hard for me to maintain my strength and my weight through all that. I tend to lose a lot of weight when I play. I was exhausted by the time I got to the Ryder Cup. I was worn out mentally, physically, emotionally.”
Thus, as he heads toward his 43rd birthday next month, Woods is formulating a blueprint to conserve energy and maintain his strength while still being a major player in 2019. After playing the Hero — a working vacation, if you will, on this island paradise against 17 of the game’s best players — Woods will fly to Australia on Sunday night for activities involving next year’s Presidents Cup, where he’ll captain the U.S. squad.
Upon his return to his Florida comhe’ll pound, Woods will celebrate the holidays and tend to daily activities that will strengthen his body, increase his endurance and sharpen his game.
“Being physically in better shape going into next season is very important in being able to handle the condensed schedule and all the big events we play every month,” he said. “There’s literally a big event every single month, so physically I’ve got to be in better shape than I was last year to be able to handle that because last year was a moving target.”
Woods said there are only five starts make that are set in stone in 2019 now: the Genesis Open in mid-February and the four majors — the Masters in April, PGA Championship in May, U.S. Open in June and British Open in July.
He’s likely started chiseling in a few more — the Farmers Insurance Open in January, a tournament he’s won a record seven times; The Players Championship in March, the Tour’s flagship event; and the Memorial, Jack Nicklaus’ annual bash Woods has won five times.
The Arnold Palmer Invitational, which he’s won eight times, would be a hard pass. There are three WGC events to consider. The Sentry Tournament of Champions that kicks off the year. And the FedExCup Playoffs.
Whatever the number, don’t expect it to reach the 18 he played this year.
“I played all my good tournaments when I had time off and I felt rested, Woods said. “If I didn’t feel rested, I didn’t play well. Maybe that’s just being a little bit older, but I think it’s important, and playing seven of the last nine last year was too much. I have to make sure that doesn’t happen again.”