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   Tiger Woods Engagement OFF, Golf ON!

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Topic: Tiger Woods Engagement OFF, Golf ON! (Read 134 times)

luci
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Tiger Woods Engagement OFF, Golf ON!
« on: Sep 11^th, 2004, 12:24pm »

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NOTE: Since his engagement breakup, watch for him to get back to his first love, GOLF Tongue

****************************READ ON Grin

He regaled European buddies Darren Clarke and Thomas Bjorn with his adventures under the sea as they sat in the clubhouse lounge last summer at Firestone. A master diver in his spare time, Woods told them the best way to witness the wonders of ocean life was to dive without a regulator and hold his breath as long as he could.

You dont want any bubbles because that scares the fish off, Woods told them. The only problem is that when you dont make any bubbles, the sharks come around, too.

This caught Bjorns attention. He stiffened his back and furrowed his thick, dark eyebrows.

Just be careful down there, Bjorn said. Our future earnings depend on you.

There was a time, not terribly long ago, when the world of golf revolved almost entirely around Woods.

No other player in history had won so many tournaments so quickly. Major championships came so easily that Woods held all four trophies at the same time unprecedented in professional golf and had a Grand Slam total of eight before he turned 27. Jack Nicklaus didnt win his eighth major until he was 30.

TV ratings spiked whenever Woods played, driving enormous gains in prize money.

And one particular scene at the Bay Hill Invitational captured Woods commanding presence on the PGA Tour. As he walked across the practice green from the ninth green to the 10th tee, even the players stopped what they were doing to watch him go by.

Now, however, the sharks are circling.

He has gone two years without winning a major. Twice this year, Woods has led after 36 holes and failed to finish it off, something he had not done in the previous five years. While he won a World Golf Championship in February, five other players have more victories this year.

Scrutiny of the worlds No. 1 player has never been higher from his breakup with swing coach Butch Harmon to his engagement to a Swedish nanny to an intimidation factor that no longer exists.

Everyone smells blood.

His five-year grip on the No. 1 ranking in jeopardy, Woods shrugs and says nothing lasts forever. He can sense his rivals closing in, and he cant seem to do anything about it.

Everybody goes through highs and lows in their career everyone, Woods said. Ive gone through one low already for a year and a half, if not almost two years. When I played from the middle of 97 through the middle of 99, I didnt really do anything. Yeah, it goes in waves.

You dont want to do that trust me but it happens.

But he had a plan and a coach during that slump. Now, his blueprint is a closely guarded secret. And Harmon, whose outspoken nature eventually grated on Woods, became the latest member of Team Tiger to be excommunicated. The relationship was severed even further two weeks ago at the U.S. Open when Harmon openly questioned his swing and said Woods was fooling himself by saying he was close.

When Tiger Woods in the past would have a bad round like hes had numerous times this year ball-striking wise he would tell you, I played really poorly. My short game saved me. Im going to the range and figure it out. We dont hear that anymore, Harmon said.

Instead, Woods is more sensitive than ever about his swing.

He refuses to discuss exactly what hes trying to change, only that he believes it will make him better.

At the Memorial Tournament, caddie Steve Williams purposely placed the bag in front of a TV camera designed to analyze swings to keep it off Woods. At the U.S. Open, the caddie again moved his bag to block the view of photographers he thought were trying to take sequence pictures of Woods swing.

Obviously, there has been an increased number of people wanting photos of a particular swing sequence between now and 2000, Williams said. Butch Harmon added fuel to the fire. What he said didnt help the matter. A lot of people are trying to decipher whats wrong with Tiger.

Woods used to bristle when someone mentioned the word slump the last couple of years when he went a month or two without a victory. He still doesnt like the word, but no longer denies it.

Certainly, Im not playing as well as I know I can, he said.

His only victory this year was the Match Play Championship, where he was two holes away from getting knocked out in the first round. He had his worst finish at Augusta National as a pro. He was never a factor at the U.S. Open.

Then again, Woods is fourth in scoring average and fourth on the money list. He has finished out of the top 10 only four times in 11 tour events. He hasnt missed a cut since 1997, the only one of his career. Ernie Els, Vijay Singh and Phil Mickelson have all had a weekend off this year.

Still, as one person in Woods camp said, Nothing will change until he wins a major.

Woods can go two more majors before he matches his career-long drought of 10 without winning. He can go another four before he matches the slump Nicklaus endured in the majors at about the same point in his career.

But there was a time when the question was when not if Woods was going to break the Nicklaus benchmark of 18 professional majors. Now, the only record that matters to Woods seems as far away as ever.

Two years ago, when Woods won the U.S. Open at Bethpage Black, the magazine asked readers on its Web site if they thought he would break Nicklaus record, and 73 percent said yes. The same question was posed two weeks ago after Shinnecock Hills, and 71 percent said no.

Its not going to happen in a short period of time, Woods said. Youve just got to keep plugging along and keep giving yourself opportunities. Theres been no player in the history of our game that has given himself more opportunities than Jack to win major championships. I think thats what separated him from everyone else.

Woods has had his chances, but not as many as Nicklaus. He was runner-up to Rich Beem in the 02 PGA Championship, and two shots back of Ben Curtis at the British Open last year. But in the last eight majors, Woods has had his worst finish in each of them.

Some question whether Woods already has reached his peak a midlife crisis before his 30th birthday.

He has had a golf club in his hand since he was in a highchair. Johnny Miller, himself a shooting star in the 1970s, raised the issue two months ago in his book that child prodigies often age faster, and that Woods might now be in his prime.

Hes an old 28, Miller said.

Tom Watson looked like he might be poised to make a run at Nicklaus record, winning eight majors in an eight-year span at age 34, right when he appeared to be in his prime. He never won another. Seve Ballesteros, whose genius as a youth might be the best comparison to Woods, won his fifth and final major at age 31.

Still, none of them ever played at such a high level so consistently their first eight years as a pro. None faced such criticism for every bump in the road.

Its probably a little bit frustrating for him, Nicklaus said. I got a little frustrated at times when I went a few tournaments without winning a major. I wouldnt worry too much about him, frankly.

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Re: Tiger Woods Engagement OFF, Golf ON!
« Reply #1 on: Sep 12^th, 2004, 11:47pm »