Why do you suppose Tiger Woods has not returned to greatness?

1. 66

   philzgrillposted 13 years ago

   The past 2 years have been dismal for Tiger.  What is going on with him and his performance?

   replyreport
   1. 55

      The Golf Profposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      I have felt that a lot of what Tiger is dealing with now is getting his mental edge back. That look in his eye that we all got accustomed to seeing just isn't there any more. He can work on his swing all he wants, but until he gets his mind back to where it once was, he will never dominate the way he once did.

      replyreport
      1. 0

         Stevennix2001posted 13 years agoin reply to this

         I couldn't agree with this more.  I think out of all the individual sporting events out there, golf is arguably the most mental (next to pool of course.  Don't bring up poker, as I refuse to acknowledge it as a sport or chess for that matter).  Personally, I thought all those golf players, media personnel, and the commissioner of the pga were being pretty unreasonable when they criticized Tiger Woods for taking so long to come back to the PGA after him and his wife were having all these problems over Tiger's infidelity issues, and his impending divorce at the time. 
         
         I personally never would've blamed Tiger Woods for taking a whole PGA season off to settle this matter with not only his wife, but to try to make things up to the people that he cared about. If anything, I probably would've respected him more for that, as it's not like he couldn't have afforded that luxury of taking a year off anyway.  I think the reality is that he came back way too soon before he was even ready to mentally, and he hasn't recovered much since.  However, the people that only cared about Tiger's marketability like the Golf Commissioner, his corporate sponsors and the rest of the PGA tour players pressured him to the point where he caved and came back before he was even ready to play. 
         
         Sure, you can argue all you want that the other PGA players had a right to complain because they had to answer all these questions about Tiger during his disturbance, but what about Jon Daly?  He has just as many problems if not more than Tiger ever had to go through, so why didn't the PGA players criticize him just as harshly in the past too?  Why only Tiger?  This only shows that these players only wanted him back on the field to make money, so the ratings would come back pouring.  They could care less about Tiger, and Tiger caved into the scrutiny to the point that he came back before he was ready, and that's sad.
         
         I know many sports commentators have tried to say that Tiger can bounce back like Kobe Bryant did during his infidelity issues, but there's a key difference between them that everyone overlooks.  Unlike Kobe who's part of a TEAM, where a group of guys can rally around and encourage him to defy the odds, Tiger really doesn't have anyone.  If anything, he's alone when he takes that golf course.  Sure, he has his caddy, but as it was reported on espn, that even his caddy that he's known for years has condemned his actions, and went on record saying that Tiger has to earn back his respects.  Add in the fact that his ex-wife hates him, and his kids probably hate him now too, so he virtually doesn't have anyone in his corner right now.  No Phil Jackson telling him a bunch of philosophical quotes, while being totally non-judgmental of his previous actions.  No teammates that rely on him daily, and encourage him to succeed, and support him rather than think ill of him.  Say what you want about Kobe's actions in Colorado, but he never lost his teammates respect completely, as they rallied around him when he needed the support. 
         
         Therefore, what does Tiger have?  He has no teammates. No coach to guide him.  Nobody is standing in his damn corner, and if his own damn caddy that he had for years isn't standing by his side at least, then he has virtually nobody.

         replyreport
   2. 0

      Husky1970posted 13 years agoin reply to this

      There are tons of really good, talented players on the PGA Tour right now.  And none of them are one bit intimidated by Tiger Woods.  What separates them is putting, who is hot and making everything and who is not.  Putting is definitely the most mental part of the game.  And it is where Tiger has lost it the most.  Personally, I do not think he will ever return to being the Tiger who made every big putt, especially on Sunday.  And I'm not sure he will ever win again.  But I am sure that Jack's record is safe.

      replyreport
2. 65

   Greek Oneposted 13 years ago

   Probably needs to get back to getting his balls wacked a bit....
   
   i mean golf balls, of course

   replyreport