Tiger Woods buried his face in a white towel, then threw it at his bag with undisguised contempt. His tee shot at the par-5 seventh had landed in gnarly rough, and going for the green appeared out of the question. When Woods exchanged a hybrid club for a short iron to lay up, he had unofficially thrown in the towel. There would be no Sunday charge at the PGA Championship. Woods shot a par 72 in the final round for a total of 286 and a tie for 11th place. His chase of Jack Nicklaus’s record 18 majors remains stalled at 14, and he has still never won a major when trailing after 54 holes. Eighteen majors have come and gone since Woods limped his way around Torrey Pines on an injured left knee and won the 2008 US Open in a playoff. That was a time when Woods rarely yielded a lead. His invincibility began to shatter three years ago when Y E Yang chased him down at the 2009 PGA. This year, Woods has struggled on the weekends at majors as never before. For the second time in the past three majors, Woods shared the 36-hole lead and squandered his opportunity. Woods entered the third round at the top with Carl Pettersson and Vijay Singh at four under, but it took only seven holes for him to tumble down the leader board. When bad weather halted play in the third round, he had slipped five shots behind the leaders. Some thought the overnight break would rejuvenate Woods. But when play resumed Sunday, he wrapped up his front nine of the third round in four-over-par 40. Only one golfer in the field, Scott Piercy, shot a higher score. “I came out, probably, with the wrong attitude,” Woods said. “I was too relaxed and tried to enjoy it, and that’s not how I play,” he said. “I play intense and full systems go. That cost me.” It used to be that whenever Woods looked to be on the brink of disaster, he summoned recovery shots that left fans breathless. For the first two days of the PGA Championship, his putter bailed him out; he took only 46 putts and had 23 one-putt greens. On Sunday, Woods returned with his red shirt and his brooding intensity and made three birdies and one bogey to finish with a 74 in the third round. But Woods’s velvety touch on the greens disappeared, and he was never within four strokes of Rory McIlroy, the eventual winner, during the final round. Over the weekend, Woods required 30 putts in each round. Most staggering, he failed to break par in any weekend round at the four majors this year. At the Masters, Woods closed with 72-74 and finished tied for 40th. Then, at the US Open, Woods shared the 36-hole lead but bogeyed four of his first eight holes on Saturday and plummeted out of contention with a five-over 75. Woods’s conservative game plan off the tee at the British Open worked wonders for two days but he shot 143 on the weekend and tied for third. It was two years ago at the 2010 PGA Championship that Woods committed to reinventing his swing with the instructor Sean Foley. The results so far are mixed. His failure to finish at majors suggests there is still work to be done. Golf commentator Frank Nobilo saidd, “When Tiger is desperate, then all of the sudden his golf becomes — I would never use the word ordinary, but it comes pretty close to it.” Woods was asked if it was harder to win a major than it was 10 years ago. “Is it harder?” he said. “Well, I haven’t won one, so probably.” It was another lost year for Woods at the majors. With McIlroy and several others showing no fear at the majors, the road will be tougher. And now Woods’s pursuit of his 15th major will have to wait until April. Source: Indian Express
Wednesday, 15 August 2012
Tiger’s final touch woes continue
Tiger Woods buried his face in a white towel, then threw it at his bag with undisguised contempt. His tee shot at the par-5 seventh had landed in gnarly rough, and going for the green appeared out of the question. When Woods exchanged a hybrid club for a short iron to lay up, he had unofficially thrown in the towel. There would be no Sunday charge at the PGA Championship. Woods shot a par 72 in the final round for a total of 286 and a tie for 11th place. His chase of Jack Nicklaus’s record 18 majors remains stalled at 14, and he has still never won a major when trailing after 54 holes. Eighteen majors have come and gone since Woods limped his way around Torrey Pines on an injured left knee and won the 2008 US Open in a playoff. That was a time when Woods rarely yielded a lead. His invincibility began to shatter three years ago when Y E Yang chased him down at the 2009 PGA. This year, Woods has struggled on the weekends at majors as never before. For the second time in the past three majors, Woods shared the 36-hole lead and squandered his opportunity. Woods entered the third round at the top with Carl Pettersson and Vijay Singh at four under, but it took only seven holes for him to tumble down the leader board. When bad weather halted play in the third round, he had slipped five shots behind the leaders. Some thought the overnight break would rejuvenate Woods. But when play resumed Sunday, he wrapped up his front nine of the third round in four-over-par 40. Only one golfer in the field, Scott Piercy, shot a higher score. “I came out, probably, with the wrong attitude,” Woods said. “I was too relaxed and tried to enjoy it, and that’s not how I play,” he said. “I play intense and full systems go. That cost me.” It used to be that whenever Woods looked to be on the brink of disaster, he summoned recovery shots that left fans breathless. For the first two days of the PGA Championship, his putter bailed him out; he took only 46 putts and had 23 one-putt greens. On Sunday, Woods returned with his red shirt and his brooding intensity and made three birdies and one bogey to finish with a 74 in the third round. But Woods’s velvety touch on the greens disappeared, and he was never within four strokes of Rory McIlroy, the eventual winner, during the final round. Over the weekend, Woods required 30 putts in each round. Most staggering, he failed to break par in any weekend round at the four majors this year. At the Masters, Woods closed with 72-74 and finished tied for 40th. Then, at the US Open, Woods shared the 36-hole lead but bogeyed four of his first eight holes on Saturday and plummeted out of contention with a five-over 75. Woods’s conservative game plan off the tee at the British Open worked wonders for two days but he shot 143 on the weekend and tied for third. It was two years ago at the 2010 PGA Championship that Woods committed to reinventing his swing with the instructor Sean Foley. The results so far are mixed. His failure to finish at majors suggests there is still work to be done. Golf commentator Frank Nobilo saidd, “When Tiger is desperate, then all of the sudden his golf becomes — I would never use the word ordinary, but it comes pretty close to it.” Woods was asked if it was harder to win a major than it was 10 years ago. “Is it harder?” he said. “Well, I haven’t won one, so probably.” It was another lost year for Woods at the majors. With McIlroy and several others showing no fear at the majors, the road will be tougher. And now Woods’s pursuit of his 15th major will have to wait until April. Source: Indian Express