THE ONLY WAY IS UP
TIGER W
Any person on the planet who watches the news or
uses the internet will know Tiger Woods. Famed for his
achievements on the golf course, Woods was a name
synonymous with anything that was good about sport.
Not only a fantastic golfer but also a supreme athlete,
Woods appeared in advertising campaigns the world
over and the American was really hard to miss if you had
even the slightest interest in golf or sport.
However, in 2009, even people who were not sure who
Tiger Woods was, would soon start hearing his name
but for the wrong reasons. Infamously chased out of his
own house by wife Elin Nordegren, Woods long line of
mistresses soon became apparent and one of the world’s
top sportsmen was left crushed, with many sponsorship
endorsement deals being cancelled and the former
number one golfer in the world entered rehabilitation for
sex addiction.
Following the scandal, Woods performance on the golf
course suffered dramatically and coupled with a series
of injuries, he has never been able to reach the heights
of pre-2009. In fact, Woods last major win was the US
Open in 2008 and he failed to win a tournament in 2014,
missing the cut twice out of the total of 7 tournaments
that he entered. Following knee surgery in 2008, it was
that same body part that provoked Woods problems in
2011 and then in 2014 it was back trouble that caused
him serious issues, forcing him to withdraw from both
the Honda Classic and the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational.
So, with all this in mind, what can the golfing world
expect from Tiger Woods in 2015? At the time of
writing, Woods has made just his second competitive
round of golf in four months and this should be taken
in to consideration when looking at the leaderboard,
which shows him propping up the rest of the field on
even par. However, following an opening round of 77,
Woods rallied and produced a 2 under par score of 70
on his second round and a 3 under par 69 on his third,
despite suffering from a fever. In addition to this, it must
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be remembered that Woods has also changed coach
again recently, with Chris Como coming in and the new
partnership will take time to settle in. Having said that,
Woods long game was an improvement on other recent
injury comebacks but it’s the short game that seems to
be troubling the four time Masters Champion, with some
terrible looking wedge and chip shots in and around
eighth hole. The back nine including two birdies and an
eagle would have helped to wipe the memory of those
poor strokes.
The Hero World Challenge, a charity tournament held by
Woods, will not define what he manages to achieve in
2015 but it is certainly a good event with which to hone
his swing and adjust to the new pattern in his short game.
There must also be the feeling that following 2014, next
year can only see an improvement considering some of
the low points suffered during the last 12 months. If
improvements are to be made then Woods will need to
have an injury free season, without the need for surgery
or extended breaks away from the course. Making
adjustments to his game requires practice to get them
right and without being out on the course, putting them
to the test, there is little hope that Woods can challenge
at any of the major events in 2015. Approaching his 39th
birthday, a recurring back injury will become increasingly
difficult to shake off and following surgery and extended
breaks in 2014 to cure this problem, Woods will be
hoping that it does not flare up again.
With the four major golf tournaments likely to be out
of reach in 2015, Woods will be targeting other PGA
Tour events as stepping stones towards further major
victories in the future. Despite not winning an event in
2014, Woods did claim five titles in 2013 and seemed
to be working his way back towards the top until those
unfortunate back injuries took their toll. If Woods could
come close to repeating those five tournament
victories in 2015 then that would represent good
progress and provide a solid foundation for the