Writing off Tiger because he hasn't played competitive golf in 2 months is a lot less ignorant than presuming that his dad's death is going to magically inspire him to new heights. j1mo
waz, new heights eh? Didn't he win this same tournament by 3 strokes in 2002, and by 15 strokes in 2000? Him winning a tournament after a long layoff is no miracle. He's done it twice before (both this year and in 2003 at the Buick Invitational, which is not the easiest of golf courses to open your season on), and him winning by 3-5 shots wouldn't be an example of him raising his game to new heights based on his history (at least IMHO). He said in his press conference that he feels really good about how he's hitting the ball right now. He said there's about 4 or 5 holes he'll almost definitely be hitting 3-wood on every day, so I think that bodes well for him if he's avoiding the driver as much as possible. His playing partners the last few days have said he's hitting it great and playing very well. I think it was Sluman who said that if Tiger is hitting fairways this week, he'll win the tournament...and if not, he'll still have a really good chance to win because he's that good of a scrambler. If Tiger plays well, I don't think it's unreasonable to think he could win by 3-5 shots, if not more. The tougher the course, the more it would separate the cream of the crop from the rest of the field. That's exactly what happened for him at Pebble and Bethpage, despite Phil playing a truly great round of golf to finish the '02 Open.
Last edited by TTUfirebird2008 : June 13th, 2006 at 04:13 PM.
with all of the off course distractions
- fathers death, fathers day, hasn't played, can't hit it straight anymore, putting -
If he does pull it out the legend of Tiger will be all the greater.
One thing's for sure, if he wins at Winged Foot I think it'll finally quiet the critics who think he can't win on tight, par 70 golf courses (even though he did it at Bethpage). His putting is usually pretty good, but he ran into a bad streak at the Masters over the last couple of days. He said today in his news conference that he just couldn't find his speed and so no matter how good of a line he picked out, his speed was always off. No matter how good you are, you have to have great speed at Augusta, and like Tiger said earlier today, he got "exposed pretty good" for not having his speed under control at the Masters. He sounds more confident about it now though, so maybe things will be back to normal for him.
My only point was that it is not unreasonable to suggest that a 2-month layoff from tournament golf would hurt Tiger more than some presumed inspirational effect due to his dad's death would help.
My only point was that it is not unreasonable to suggest that a 2-month layoff from tournament golf would hurt Tiger more than some presumed inspirational effect due to his dad's death would help.
You are correct - it's not unreasonable. The only thing that prevents your point from being an absolut fact is that we're talking about Tiger.
You are correct - it's not unreasonable. The only thing that prevents your point from being an absolut fact is that we're talking about Tiger.
It's ALL opinion. The first poster suggested another poster was "ignorant" (a borderline board rules violation, BTW) for implying that Tiger's layoff may hurt him. I didn't think that the suggestion that a layoff from tournament golf just might have an adverse effect on someones game was particularly ignorant. It makes some sense to me. He went on to suggest that Tiger was going to draw inspiration from his father's death which would send him to victory. Now Tiger is Tiger and he may very well win this week, but this "he's going to win one for his dear departed father" stuff reminds me more of a lame Disney flick.
Now Tiger is Tiger and he may very well win this week, but this "he's going to win one for his dear departed father" stuff reminds me more of a lame Disney flick.
You must be referring to one of the sequels. I was just saying if there was one person who can do it, despite the break and loss, it's Tig. But it's pretty much due to the practice he puts in, the talent he has and desire to win.
That is the same thing.......the most accurate golfers in the world avg a 5% miss off line....most Pro's avg 7%. So the longer you hit the ball with the same precentage of miss the larger the miss will be.
No, that is not the same thing. And while it may be true that a longer hitter's misses stand a better chance of straying further off course, the fact remains that inaccuracy is what is penalized...not distance.
with all of the off course distractions
- fathers death, fathers day, hasn't played, can't hit it straight anymore, putting -
If he does pull it out the legend of Tiger will be all the greater.
My response to all of this banter is be ready for him to play as focused as he has ever been. Why do I say this? because he is tougher, mentally, than any other golfer, and, without a doubt, he has the best sports psychologist money can buy!!!!!!
Anyone see his press conference yesterday? Talking about his dad without a quiver in his voice and without even coming close to being teary-eyed. I'm not going to say he will win, but I think he is focused and ready to play.
I'm not sure either Phil or Tiger are going to want to remember the 2006 U.S. Open. My own opinion is that if Tiger and Phil were matched against each other 10 times, Tiger would win at least 8 of them.
It's funny to look back at our predictions. Tiger didn't come close to a top 10 finish. I think he's still dealing with the loss of his father. I don't expect for him to do well at all this year.
June 13th, 2006, 04:08 PM
I was just saying if there was one person who can do it, despite the break and loss, it's Tig. But it's pretty much due to the practice he puts in, the talent he has and desire to win.
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