Tiger Woods Finally Hits Rock Bottom in Atlanta
Woods’ game is like his life — a mess.
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Things can’t get much worse for Tiger Woods.
Woods, who took the PGA by storm when he joined the tour in the 1990’s.
The last two years, however, have been a different story. It seems that the brash cockiness that made him great has finally caught up to him in a big way. Woods’ entered this week’s PGA Championship with hopes of winning but proceeded to play arguably the worse two rounds of his professional life at the Atlanta Athletics Club. He played a horrendous Back-9 Thursday and finished with a 7-over 77. His score was better in Friday’s second round (73) but Friday was an unmitigated disaster for a man who changed the face of golf. He hit 22 bunkers, put four balls in the water and posted five double bogies.
Woods claims his body is fine. His game and life, howevwer, appear to be in shambles. In his career, Tiger has fired swing coaches Butch Harmon and Hank Haney and recently canned caddie Steve Williams for working with Adam Scott. After Tiger sacked Williams, Scott won a tournament with Williams on the bag, adding insult to injury.
Everybody witnessed Tiger’s very public, very messy divorce from Sweedish model Elin Nordegen. But that might not be the messiest breakup that Woods endured. After Scott, the 30-year old Austrailian, won last week’s WGC-Bridgestone event in Akron, Ohio, CBS gave Williams the forum he needed to mercilessly blast golf’s one-time young superstar. Williams called Scott’s victory the most important and biggest victory of his own career.
Take that, Tiger. For years, Williams acted as Woods’ designated thug. When Tiger was angry with fans, Williams pitched the hissy fit. Well, Williams gave Woods a taste of his on medicine in the week leading up to the season’s final major. His anger was aimed squarely at Woods.
For nearly two decades, Tiger Woods seemed like another Michael Jordan — a Teflon athlete that could do no wrong in the eyes of fans and media, despite the fact that his arrogance was matched only by that of Williams.
That’s just not the way it is anymore.
The Woods-Williams divorce served up fodder sportstalk personalities like Jim Rome and sportswriter John Feintein, who’s dealt with his share divas. Rome, Feinstein and others are asking just what’s wrong with Woods.
That’s a question that neither Rome or Feinstein need not ask because in their minds, they already know the answer.
That is that Tiger’s ego has led him to belief that he’s bigger than golf, the PGA and perhaps the world.
Sad truth is: They’re probably right. Tiger has always been one of golf’s most fascinating and enigmatic characters. Now, however, the characteristics that led to his greatness are now biting him.
Late LA Times sports columnist Jim Murray once wrote that golfers were the last of the rugged individuals in the sportsworld. And that certainly appears to be the case. Woods, however, has now taken that to a new level.
He has few friends, according to Feinstein, and has isolated himself from those like Harmon, Haney and Williams, who have meant so much to his game.
Woods’ brashness and utter disregard for others has finally brought the chickens home to roost.
Will Tiger ever recapture his glory?
No one can answer that question but Father Time. One thing’s for certain, Tiger is and has always been a big draw. Now, however, it will probably be for all the wrong reasons. Fans used to watch to see what Woods could do next. Now, they’ll be watching to see how much farther he can fall and in what soap opera he’ll be embroiled in next.
