With the Tiger's win at Bay Hill, the golfing world and many of our pundits are positively apoplectic about his upcoming 5th green jacket at Augusta, and with good reason, but for those who are falling into the old Tiger's da man trap, I say hold on now, take a step back and let's consider a few facts that are being trampled by my colleagues rushing for a spot by the 18th green to watch Charl put the jacket over Tiger's shoulders..
Yes Tiger won at Arnie's place after a T3 in Dubai, and a T2 at Honda, yes Sean Foley has given him a potent and reliable game plan on the tee box, yes he made a lot of clutch putts at Bay Hill, yes since his last win at Augusta in 2005 his worst finish there is 6th, including T4th last year when he wasn't playing worth a damn and yes he seems to have the priorities in his life in order and like his game, under control. All convincing stuff, all point to a good week for Tiger, but to ignore everyone else except Tiger and to a lesser extent Rory and Phil is simply irresponsible analysis.
Without doubt the hierarchy in the game has changed. Just because Tiger won a tournament on a course he clearly excels on without the world's top 4 players in attendance doesn't mean everything he lost ever since he crashed his Cadillac has been erased. He is now human, divorced like most of us, made a fool of himself, and in his absence the new kids on the block, and some of the older residents, have moved in, and are playing well.
Steve Stricker, quietly #5 in the world has already won at the Tournament of Champions. He was T6 at Augusta in 2009
Phil Mickelson won at Pebble,his final round 64 eleven shots better than Tiger, then he came second the next week in Phoenix. He was 4th this week and even if he wasn't in form, he clearly knows how to play Augusta, 3 green jackets pay testament to that.
Bill Haas had a playoff win at Riviera and although his best at Augusta was T26, remember he won the whole damn FedEx pot of loot last year so deserves your respect.. doesn't he??
Rory McIlroy went to No. 1 in the world with his win at the Honda, the last event he played. McIlroy’s worst finish since last year's PGA was an 11th-place tie at the Dubai World Championship. None of the other 11 finishes were outside the top 5, nine were inside the top 3. The effect of his back nine collapse last year has more than been answered in case you forgot Congressional, and that experience will only make him better at Augusta.
Rory said: “Last year’s Masters was definitely a defining moment for me. It could’ve been a crossroads in my career. I could’ve done what I did on Sunday at Augusta and let it affect me and let it get to me, and maybe go into a slump, or get down or feel sorry for myself. But I had enough good people around me not to let that happen. It was a big crossroads for me in my career, and I was able to go down the right path and put things right by winning the next Major. One of the worst things I did was just trying to stay ahead of everyone else,” he said. “Instead, I maybe should’ve had a number in my head, like getting to 15 under. That way, you have a target, and that’s all you’re thinking about
I’ll try to take the same approach to the tournament as I did last year. The week before, I’ll go up to Augusta for a couple of days, do what I usually do, map the course out and do my own diagrams and my own drawings of the greens and slopes.
You know roughly where the pin positions are likely to be for all four rounds, so you just try to reacquaint yourself with those and take different putts from all areas of the greens. Speaking about it makes me excited about going back there, and I can’t wait for it to start now
On top of all that he is happier than ever with new beau Caroline Wozniack.. enough said..
Luke Donald won a playoff at Innisbrook and took back the #1 ranking. Donald, the all time most under rated, unappreciated world #1, won everything, I remind you, everything, last year, and has a T3 T4 and T10 at Augusta. With all he has done and his all world short game, to dismiss him because he hasn't won a major is nonsense... isn't it ??
Lee Westwood was T21 this week as he heads to Augusta where he was 2nd to Phil in 2010, he also has a T6 and a couple of T11's. He is #3 in the world and has been all over the leaderboard in majors for the last 5 years. He has already been 4th at the Accenture Match Play and 2nd in Dubai this year and is taking a much improved short game to Augusta this year. He is all about winning majors at 37, it could be his week couldn't it ??
Martin Kaymer, now 6th in the world has MC in all 4 trips to the Masters, so he will be playing in practice with Bernhard Langer this week to see if he can turn his enormous talent loose on a course he says has some holes that just don't suit my eye. I'm not picking him in my top 5, but to dismiss him would be silly.
Charl Schwartzel has proudly taken his green jacket to all corners of the golfing globe since his sensational 4 birdie finish moved him up a notch to that top level on golf's totem pole. He has already been T4 at Doral and T5 at the Honda. It surely could be Charl's week, couldn't it ?
What of Justin Rose, now 9th in the world, firmly established with a family in Orlando, Florida under the tutelage of Sean Foley, already a winner at Doral this year, T11 at Augusta last year, as high as T5 in 2007 the year he won the European Tour Order of Merit. He easily could be the first Englishman since Sir Nick Faldo in 1996 to don the green jacket.. couldn't he ?
Adam Scott has moved to and joined the Albany Club in the Bahamas, from London, where he has been practising diligently, rather than playing, he only has played 3 events, had 9 rounds, remember he had his tonsils taken out so missed the earliest part of the season, but he was T2 last year, only beaten by the Schwartzel birdie on 18. He feels he has the right preparation formula and of course has the vastly experienced Steve Williams passing on all the secrets he and Tiger used to share about how to play Augusta. He could win couldn't he..??
What of Bubba and Keegan and Sergio and Ryo and Brandt and Kuch, and Louis, and Paul Lawrie. They are all playing well, will it be their week??
Didn't Mike Weir 2003 and Zach Johnson 2007 and Trevor Immelman 2008 and before them Larry Mize 1987 and Sandy Lyle 1988 teach us anything ??
The point is, Tiger will always be the yard stick as long as he shows up, always be the man to beat, he will likely play well this week, he and Phil have won 6 of the titles since 2000 rolled around, but I'm just sayin' I expect more of what we had last year when eight players had at least a share of the lead on the final day.
To suggest Tiger is still head and shoulders above all the others is simply no longer the case, and never will be again, and that just makes this week more exciting than ever.
Bryan Angus also on twitter@mummmbles and at www.isr1050.com
.
No comments:
Post a Comment