I find it absolutely amazing that the number 1 golfer in the world (Tiger Woods) cannot hit his driver well! He is number 1 by a wide margin, yet his performance with the driver seems mediocre at best, even now that he is playing very well again.
I am trying to think of other sports where the number 1 has serious troubles with some important aspect of his/her game, and all I can come up with is Shaq (basketball) who cannot execute on free-throws.
Are there any other examples of number 1 sports stars that are mediocre (or worse) with important aspects of their game.
The DH spot was made for this...besides, I don't think that it is he can't hit a driver, but to justify using it over the 3 wood or 2 iron he has to hit a fairly full shot, otherwise why use it over the more accurate albeit shorter clubs...there is no point in hitting a 65% driver when a normal full 80-85% swing of the two iron goes just as far and does so with more accuracy...just goes to show how hard the club is to hit...
The DH spot was made for this...besides, I don't think that it is he can't hit a driver, but to justify using it over the 3 wood or 2 iron he has to hit a fairly full shot, otherwise why use it over the more accurate albeit shorter clubs...there is no point in hitting a 65% driver when a normal full 80-85% swing of the two iron goes just as far and does so with more accuracy...just goes to show how hard the club is to hit...
Just because he can't seem to hit is driver, doesn't mean to say he can;t be worlds number one. It's how he gets from tee to green that counts. Recovery shots etc. And when he can hit his driver, I think theres a good point why they call him worlds No.1.
Michael Schumacher doesn't always go well when he's the F1 best racer.
Just because he can't seem to hit is driver, doesn't mean to say he can;t be worlds number one..
I did not mean to imply that TW should not be No. 1, he clearly is. I am just surprised that the No. 1 golfer in the world appears to be struggling with an important club as if he were average (same goes for the No. 2 golfer). It strikes me as odd, like the best carpenter in the world struggling with the hammer, or the best accountant in the world struggling with the calculator!
To put it another way, in the spirit of the intention of this post: The best tennis player in the world does have a decent backhand. The best pool player in the world does not struggle with the middle pockets. The best swimmer in the world makes good turns at the ends of the pool....
I did not mean to imply that TW should not be No. 1, he clearly is. I am just surprised that the No. 1 golfer in the world appears to be struggling with an important club as if he were average (same goes for the No. 2 golfer). It strikes me as odd, like the best carpenter in the world struggling with the hammer, or the best accountant in the world struggling with the calculator!
To put it another way, in the spirit of the intention of this post: The best tennis player in the world does have a decent backhand. The best pool player in the world does not struggle with the middle pockets. The best swimmer in the world makes good turns at the ends of the pool....
But it's quite conceivable for the best tennis player in the world not to be very good at playing at the net. They just avoid going forwards. Sampras was best in the world for quite some time, but he couldn't play clay court tennis particularly well (relatively speaking anyway).
I did not mean to imply that TW should not be No. 1, he clearly is. I am just surprised that the No. 1 golfer in the world appears to be struggling with an important club as if he were average (same goes for the No. 2 golfer). It strikes me as odd, like the best carpenter in the world struggling with the hammer, or the best accountant in the world struggling with the calculator!
To put it another way, in the spirit of the intention of this post: The best tennis player in the world does have a decent backhand. The best pool player in the world does not struggle with the middle pockets. The best swimmer in the world makes good turns at the ends of the pool....
Yes, I see what you're saying. I suppose you are right, But he does cover his bad drives well, especially out the rough. My apologies for the misunderstanding of your post.
he trys to kill it and shape shots, if he just focused on hitting it straight (which he can do well), he'd be great, but i think he gets bored with himself so he challenges himself to do more things
If the carpenter had 14 completely different hammers and the accountant had 14 completely different calculators there's a good chance they'd miscue with one of them. I've never met a carpenter that doesn't mishit a nail head occasionally or an accountant that never hits the wrong number on his calculator. The difference is Tiger and Phil have to play their "mishits."
I suppose that I foolishly overlooked the following: The pro golfers play their tournaments on courses that are much harder/longer than the ones that most golfers play, which makes them seem more human than they really are. If you let them loose on an easy course they will blow it away.
In contrast, tennis players / basketball players play their games on the same courts that you and I use (not on courts with higher nets). All swimmers use the same pool and the same water. 5 km is as long for the casual jogger as it is for Olympians etc..
I suppose that I foolishly overlooked the following: The pro golfers play their tournaments on courses that are much harder/longer than the ones that most golfers play, which makes them seem more human than they really are. If you let them loose on an easy course they will blow it away.
In contrast, tennis players / basketball players play their games on the same courts that you and I use (not on courts with higher nets). All swimmers use the same pool and the same water. 5 km is as long for the casual jogger as it is for Olympians etc..
Yeah that is true. The tour courses are probably a lot narrower than your average public or even private golf clubs around the world. Tiger is not the only top player who can't hit his driver straight. Phil, Vijay, and a bunch of others belong on that list. Furyk is the only one that is really highly ranked who is a straightball hitter, but if he had a 125 mph swing speed like Tiger, I seriously doubt he'd hit it as straight as he does.
I think the fact that he's maturing enough to know when and when not to hit the driver, and to know when it's not working for him, is a major factor in why he's been playing as well as he has lately. So you could say not hitting the driver is part of the reason he's #1, as of late anyway.
I think the fact that he's maturing enough to know when and when not to hit the driver, and to know when it's not working for him, is a major factor in why he's been playing as well as he has lately. So you could say not hitting the driver is part of the reason he's #1, as of late anyway.
Yesterday TW tried to hit driver on a number of holes on the front 9, with bad results, then went back to the more sensible strategy. It seems that these guys (1&2) simply will not be content with the less aggressive approach, even when it works well for them. In contrast, the No. 1 female golfer (Annika) seems to be more self-aware and usually chooses to play the most effective strategy.
Yesterday TW tried to hit driver on a number of holes on the front 9, with bad results, then went back to the more sensible strategy. It seems that these guys (1&2) simply will not be content with the less aggressive approach, even when it works well for them. In contrast, the No. 1 female golfer (Annika) seems to be more self-aware and usually chooses to play the most effective strategy.
On a typical course, how much does being in the rough hurt these guys? Seriously, they'll have no more than 9 iron into just about any par 4 unless they catch a tree...and there's no guarantee of hitting the fairway by scaling back to a 5 wood. The strategy seems to work pretty well for these guys, seeing that they're #1 & 2 in the world.
August 27th, 2006, 02:32 AM
I've never met a carpenter that doesn't mishit a nail head occasionally or an accountant that never hits the wrong number on his calculator. 
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