Everyone has an opinion and most have, in one way or another, followed the career of Tiger Woods. He has climbed to the top, fallen from grace and is making his way back. Will it ever be what it was or will he even compete with the up and coming sensations that are apparently dominating the spot light on the world stage of championship golf?
The coming year will prove to the skeptics and harsh critics that he is still Tiger Woods, the man on the verge of becoming the greatest golfer ever. Fourteen major championships and only four more to tie Jack’s record of 18, Tiger is not finished. More than once he has reinvented his golf swing and gone on to dominate, much to the dismay of the critics. From Butch to Haney, and now Sean Foley, Tiger will once again, climb to the surface and break through.
Three surgeries, one divorce and another swing change later, Tiger once again has calmed the troubled waters while his life is moving forward, reminding all of us not to dwell on the past. Life moves forward, not backwards. Perhaps the healing started when he fired his long time caddie, Stevie Williams, and replaced swing coach Hank Haney with Sean Foley. Foley’s impact on Tiger has been holistic from the standpoint of mind and body approach. Not to mention another surgery demanding more time off for rehabilitation.
Certainly, the early pick of admirer and President Cup Captain Fred Couples instilled faith in him and pushed him to work even harder to prove his worth. Long time friend and partner Steve Stricker’s advise to release the putter reignited the feel on the green and the camaraderie shared with his teammates in the win “down under” has helped. Maybe all the above helped him believe in himself and gave him the confidence during the season finale win at his own tournament. Yes, his name was back in the winner’s category at the close of the year.
Even though many people turned away — from fans, to sponsors and just followers of the game — Tiger is rebuilding. Still having the fire to win, narrower stance to soften his thrust and torque on that leg and add length in years to his career, Tiger appears to be headed into 2012 needing golf and golf needing him. With another title sponsor along with Nike on board riding his coat tales, Tiger is a force in the world of golf, like it or not. It’s been two years since he lost that sponsorship from Cadillac, you remember when he crashed the vehicle and then soon after crashed the life as he and we knew it to be. Now he is climbing back up and the talk will soon, again, be about history, Tiger and how the two are on a collision course!
Leave a Reply