Tiger is just too proud to call in someone like Butch Harmon
I PLAYED a round of golf with John Bland last week for the first time in 35 years. By strange coincidence the last time we both remember playing together was also at Zwartkop Country Club, in a Sunshine Tour event in 1980.
John is one of the few people who seem to have dodged old age. Well, certainly in the case of the quality of his golf and his health. In 45 years of playing tournament golf he has only had to withdraw three times due to sickness or injury. Perhaps that is also because John didn’t spend much time in the gym (where it seems to me some of the injuries of today’s players originate).
John turns 70 in a couple of weeks and he waltzed around Zwartkop in 68. He breaks his age most times that he plays, a feat that is equalled regularly by other well-known professionals, Denis Hutchinson and Simon Hobday. While these players are breaking their age, all I’m trying to do is break my weight!
On the other end of the scale is Tiger Woods, who turns 40 at the end of the year and whose age and health issues seem to have caught up with him.
Will Tiger come back? That question has at last overtaken the same questions we’ve asked about Ernie.
Tiger’s golf this year has been worse that anybody could have imagined. In your wildest dreams, would you ever have believed that Jordan Spieth could average three shots less per round than Tiger? In fact, in the twenty rounds of tournament play that they both played this year, Jordan could have given Tiger three shots a nine and beaten him. How and why has this happened and is it possible for Tiger to come back from it?
Firstly, how? His health issues have been most instrumental. He’s had too much time where he could not play or practice, plus the knee surgery and other ailments have meant changes to his swing.
Age? Nearing 40 and playing against 20-something year olds who aren’t scared of you, and who hit the ball further and straighter … that’s a tough combination to beat. Also, 40-year old nerves aren’t as good as 20-year old nerves. There are very few players whose careers have included wins over a period longer than 15 years. Palmer, Trevino, Watson and Ballesteros all had their wins over a period of 8 or so years.
Why? Much of Tiger’s troubles seemed to start with the fire hydrant incident and the divorce that followed. When you look back at Tiger’s first Masters win, Jack Nicklaus said at the time that Tiger could win ten Masters tournaments and that he believed Tiger would overtake his record of 18 major wins. He also did say that a lot would depend on what would happen when Tiger got married and had children, and also how healthy he would be. Could Nicklaus see into the future? How true both of those predictions have turned out to be…
Had Tiger had a marriage as successful as Jack’s and the same health that Jack has enjoyed, he very probably would have already overtaken Jack’s record. Tiger is certainly doing his very best to be a good dad. He tries to spend a lot of time with his kids, but that does take away time that he would normally have for practicing.
Is it possible for Tiger to come back? Well, I’ve maintained for a long time that Tiger will still win tournaments on the PGA Tour. He could still win a major, but I don’t believe he will ever dominate the game the way he once did. I don’t believe he has the motivation or the desire to practice the way he needs to to get his game back. That’s also assuming that his body would allow him to practice for hours a day, which I’m sure it wont.
Tiger has now opened a restaurant, he designs golf courses, he is devoted to his Foundation, he wants to spend time with his kids and I’m sure he would like a stable, long- term relationship. All of these things affect his time and his thoughts. Jack Nicklaus had the rare ability to switch projects on and off in his mind. Does Tiger have that ability or will he be thinking about his children, or the design of a golf hole as he walks down the second fairway at Augusta? If he doesn’t he will not regain the consistency to perform.
He also needs to simplify his swing thoughts. If he could convince Butch Harmon to help him for six months it could make the world of difference. Butch is far more than just a swing coach. He can help Tiger mentally as he has done with Dustin Johnson, Phil Mickelson and Rickie Fowler.
Unfortunately, I don’t think that will happen. Tiger is a proud man with a massive ego and I don’t think he would ever want to give real credit to someone else for his success. There will be a few lightning in a bottle moments for Tiger but the consistency he showed in his prime is gone.