Rory’s struggling to see Woods for trees but Tiger’s tail is up
RORY MCILROY is back in action this week along with Tiger Woods at the Valspar Championship.
And you could make a case of being more hopeful for Tiger than Rory.
Where is Rory at? I really don’t know.
Is he turning into a flat track bully?
Is there too much going on with his game?
When you look at some old footage, he really has changed a lot of the rhythm to
his swing.
Now, it’s easy to say it’s just a swing change.
But if you delve a little deeper, it’s more than that.
I feel he’s going against the grain of his natural movement.
When you watch him warm up, there’s more instinct and flow. This isn’t much of an issue 95 per cent of the time but with all these top players, it is the extra five per cent that really counts.
When you have an element of doubt, small matters can become much greater.
Look back to his famous sleep-in at the Ryder Cup when he just pitched up and went with the flow. OK, I’m not suggesting that’s the answer, but we’re dealing with a golfing genius here.
His natural ability to hit the ball is second to none. It doesn’t have to be perfect to be good enough.
So why not just go and play the game as a game?
Truth be told, the guys at the top end of the game are miles in front of him right now.
Rory needs to just play. No big technical solutions are required, no magic formula. He needs to go have fun, enjoy the ability he possesses – and stop trying to find perfection.
As for Tiger, it’s intriguing to consider what he’s got in store for us this week.
He’s playing at a venue that’s new to him. That’s a statement. He wants to play again.
He has shown some great signs in recent weeks that he’s coming back to form.
He’s doing it himself, too, so there should be very little interference.
At times it can be so refreshing when you have no coach.
Two things happen – you don’t dwell so much on bad shots, as you’re not so preoccupied with your swing.
The message is from you and therefore you take more ownership of your game.
I’m not suggesting that this is the route for everybody, but from time to time it is a great way to de-clutter the mind.
Tiger has always had the ability to focus on trying to shoot the lowest score he can on a given day.
It’s probably his greatest talent.
Will he return to his heyday? Absolutely not. But I now feel that he can be competitive again.
As always, where there’s a will, there’s a way. I feel that he really wants it again. Maybe he has realised that it’s what defines him.
Tiger is so good for the game; the figures all skyrocket when he competes. The narrative is always different with him, so we live in hope for the ultimate comeback story.
Phil Mickelson proved on Sunday that age is no barrier. I’m hoping Tiger will get a bounce from that.
But it really is shaping up so beautifully for Augusta.
The young guns are loaded but a few old timers could come back and ruin their party.
The players at the top end are miles ahead of Rory right now