LAST HURRAH?
Tiger’s triumph inspires Kelly ahead of Bells
KELLY Slater will draw on Tiger Woods’s US Masters triumph as surfing’s greatest competitor aims for a big comeback win of his own.
Slater said he had related what Woods had done back to his own career before the Rip Curl Pro at Bells Beach.
The 11-time world surfing champion and confessed diehard golfer stayed up all night to watch Woods win his 15th major title.
Slater knows the golfer and there are parallels in their stellar sporting careers.
Like Woods, he remains at the centre of his sport — but it is eight years since the 47-yearold’s most recent world surfing title.
Slater last rang the famous Bells Beach trophy in 2010, his fourth success at the event.
But two years ago, he suffered the worst injury of his career when he badly broke his foot.
He was candid yesterday, saying this might be the last time he competes at Bells Beach.
But just as Woods stared down his rivals in the fourth round at Augusta’s Amen Corner, no one is feared more in the line-up than Slater (right).
Woods reminded Slater that experience counted for plenty.
“It’s big and I think I forget it sometimes,” Slater said.
“I have people telling me every single day ‘it’s time for you to retire’ ... it’s funny, because that’s what people think about themselves deep down inside.”
He is coming off a round two elimination on the Gold Coast in the opening round of the World Surf League, so Woods’s example is also timely.
“That guy probably has more pressure on him from more angles than maybe any athlete has had, ever,” Slater said. “He’s probably also the most hated guy by women of all time, because it (Woods’s marriage break-up) was so public.
“He’s a guy who’s in a rare position in life, that not many people understand, and there’s no blueprint for him.
“There are a lot of guys who are more talented than Tiger nowadays . . . he just took his experience and he was calm and worked through it and just trusted himself.
“I’m going to draw a lot of f inspiration from that this week, for sure.”