What's Up With Tiger?

July 8, 2010


We have never heard the word "mediocre" used in the same sentence with Tiger Woods. Until now. A mediocre tournament within the PGA is when a player barely makes the cut and fails to break par in any of the tourney's four rounds. That is what Tiger did last week at the ATT National Tournament.

By the time the CBS cameras came on at 2 p.m. on Sunday, Woods was putting the finishing touches on his 1-over 71 in a week when he was at 4-over 284 and never did break par. For the first time since the 1999 Bay Hill Invitational, Woods was unable to break par in a single round of a 72-hole event.

Everyone seems to have an opinion on Woods' woes, with most naysayers obviously pointing to the state of his head following all those scandalous revelations, the breakup of his marriage, and a major hit his bank account will take when his divorce to soon-to-be ex-wife Elin Nordegren is complete.

We are starting to hear talk that Tiger will never return to his former form. I read some of that talk and it led to me to some blogs that gave some reasons for Woods' mediocrity.

The most interesting reason out there is that Tiger played his best golf when he was spending the majority of his time chasing women. I am not sure about the correlation, but Tiger is free again. Yes, he is $100M lighter in the wallet after reaching a divorce settlement. When Tiger starts winning again, and I do believe he will, I fully expect to read opinions or guesses that Tiger is getting busy off the course.

Photo: Tiger Woods

There is a more scientific reason floating around out there. There are those who believe the recent rule change regarding grooves in the player's wedges is effecting Tiger. A vital part of Tiger's game has always been his ability to spin the ball where ever he wanted it on the green. This skill set up both birdies and par saves. That's not happening now, and its just the kind of thing that is going to leave someone's game when they can't get the spin from the square grooves anymore. There is actually some evidence giving credence to this theory as Tiger ranks 109th on tour on hitting greens in regulation. In other words, he is not hitting greens like he used to. I looked up how he did last year and he ranked 16th in hitting greens.

Actually there is another scientific theory being discussed. There are those who are saying Woods does not have human growth hormone (HGH) to help him. His doctor is in jail, for dispersing HGH, and Tiger does not trust anyone else to get it. I am not sure I can go along with this theory.

One thing I do believe in is that Tiger will be back. I want to remind you of two items. Tiger did not win a single tournament in 1999 before dominating the tour in 2000 and Jack Nicklaus had a two year stretch in the middle of his career when he did not win a single tournament.

Next up for Woods is the British Open next week. He has won at St. Andrews before and is likely to contend again. The British Open will be his seventh start of the 2010 season since he began playing for real at the Masters following a four-month self-imposed exile from the game. Keep this in mind. Since 1999, Tiger has won at least once in every six starts.

Mid Summer Classic Is Becoming A Joke

Major League Baseball will reach the All-Star break next week. The All-Star game is next Tuesday and the players have already been announced. Again, there are some controversial selections, picks that beg the question of just what is baseball’s All-Star Game really about.

Baseball officials will give these company lines. It’s a game for the fans. It’s a reward for the players. It’s all about watching the best players in baseball. It’s all about watching the best players IN THE FIRST HALF (which is a different thing). It’s about acknowledging the best teams.

My favorite two is that it’s a real game where winning and losing matters. This is actually true since World Series home field advantage is on the line. Then we will also hear that it’s an exhibition game where there’s nothing but personal pride at stake.

Actually, the game tries to be everything to everyone, and because of this, it is becoming comical.

Photo: Joey Votto

Comical in that the best players in the game are not at this game. How can they be when each team in baseball has to have at least one player on the team? Journeyman Omar Infante made the team this year over Joey Votto who leads the National League in home runs. The same Infante who has a career batting average below .270 and the same Infante who seems to be on a different team every season. In other words, he wears out his welcome rather quickly. But the Atlanta Braves had to have someone on the team.

Here’s what I think the All-Star Game means. If the game is going to determine who gets home field advantage in the World Series, I think the All-Star Game should focus on the players having the best seasons. I am fine with fans voting for the starters. But baseball has to find a way to get deserving players to fill out the roster.