Tiger Woods (Offical Thread)

[buckiprof]

Tiger has a few records too, ya know.

Yeah but what no one ever acknowledges is a pretty damn big advantage Eldrick has had in his quest to catch the greatest golfer of all time and the majors record. I recall when Eldrick decided it was time to turn pro and Nike gave him a 5 year 40 million dollar contract! Think about that for a minute.

See the end result of Nike setting Eldrick up for life, before he won a single major, is quite profound. As a result, Eldrick entered somewhere around 20 events a year and the vast majority of those were to prepare him for the majors. Now that is a tremendous advantage over someone who has to go out there week after week, basically earn their money on the course, and grind away. Yes Eldrick was given a huge luxury by being able to pick and choose events....a luxury that the greatest golfer did not have. The greatest golfer had to enter many more tournaments to make money.

A typical year for Eldrick that begins with the Masters looks something like this: Masters, Memorial, US Open, British Open (sometimes a tourney between US and British), Buick Open, and the PGA. (Especially after Nike's 100 million dollar contract in 2001!). Being able to work on your game to prepare for the majors in this fashion is a tremendous advantage. If we assume a tourney between the US and British Opens, that is 7 total tournaments from the beginning of April until early to mid-August....and 4 of those are the majors. It is no surprise at all that this little fact on the huge advantage Eldrick has enjoyed for his entire pro career is never mentioned!

So while Eldrick continues to chase the greatest golfer's majors record, keep in the back of your mind the following. How many of those 19 runner-ups in majors would have been victories if the greatest golfer had the same luxury of picking and choosing events like Eldrick has enjoyed? How many of those 19 runner-ups would have been victories if The Golden Bear could have followed the schedule Eldrick typically follows as laid out in the prior paragraph?

I will give Eldrick his due. He is a helluva golf talent. But his continual boorish behavior, which has been going on for many, many years, his swearing, which has been going on for many, many years, his banging of the clubs on the ground like a petulant spoiled brat, is the antithesis of good golf etiquette. Yeah everyone can get pissed on the golf course and swear or beat a club on the ground, but IMO it should be very rare. With Eldrick, it is to be expected. Ultimately, it shows a fundamental lack of respect for the game that quite frankly that I could do without.

Since this is the Masters thread, to post something Masters related, I will really enjoy the final round tomorrow. It is almost always riveting with many twists and turns. The only negative will be the unwarranted time that will be wasted showing and talking about Eldrick's final round....hopefully, CBS can keep that to under 5 minutes. Now if Eldrick goes out and shoots a 61 or 62, posts an early low score, it will be warranted, but not to the level that CBS will take it.

 

[ImFrigginFly]

Apply a napkin to the tip of your penis immediately, because it has to be dripping BIG TIME to make a comment like that. "Well Past Jack" by now? Are you serious, really?

No "Peace" in this thread

It's hard to make such a bold declaration like WolverineMike did, but he has a point that actually a lot of professionals and analysts share. Tiger absolutely demolished the competition from 1999-2002. Then for some inexplicable reason, he decided to fire Butch Harmon and make all sorts of swing changes.

-12 in the 2000 U.S. Open when nobody even finished under par.
-19 in the Open Championship in 2000
-18 in the 2000 PGA Championship
-3 in the 2002 U.S. Open when nobody finished under par

7 (half of his) major victories from 1999-2002.
27 PGA Tour victories from 1999-2002.
6 wins in a row in 2000.

 

[ImFrigginFly]

Yeah but what no one ever acknowledges is a pretty damn big advantage Eldrick has had in his quest to catch the greatest golfer of all time and the majors record. I recall when Eldrick decided it was time to turn pro and Nike gave him a 5 year 40 million dollar contract! Think about that for a minute.

See the end result of Nike setting Eldrick up for life, before he won a single major, is quite profound. As a result, Eldrick entered somewhere around 20 events a year and the vast majority of those were to prepare him for the majors. Now that is a tremendous advantage over someone who has to go out there week after week, basically earn their money on the course, and grind away. Yes Eldrick was given a huge luxury by being able to pick and choose events....a luxury that the greatest golfer did not have. The greatest golfer had to enter many more tournaments to make money.

A typical year for Eldrick that begins with the Masters looks something like this: Masters, Memorial, US Open, British Open (sometimes a tourney between US and British), Buick Open, and the PGA. (Especially after Nike's 100 million dollar contract in 2001!). Being able to work on your game to prepare for the majors in this fashion is a tremendous advantage. If we assume a tourney between the US and British Opens, that is 7 total tournaments from the beginning of April until early to mid-August....and 4 of those are the majors. It is no surprise at all that this little fact on the huge advantage Eldrick has enjoyed for his entire pro career is never mentioned!

So while Eldrick continues to chase the greatest golfer's majors record, keep in the back of your mind the following. How many of those 19 runner-ups in majors would have been victories if the greatest golfer had the same luxury of picking and choosing events like Eldrick has enjoyed? How many of those 19 runner-ups would have been victories if The Golden Bear could have followed the schedule Eldrick typically follows as laid out in the prior paragraph?

I will give Eldrick his due. He is a helluva golf talent. But his continual boorish behavior, which has been going on for many, many years, his swearing, which has been going on for many, many years, his banging of the clubs on the ground like a petulant spoiled brat, is the antithesis of good golf etiquette. Yeah everyone can get pissed on the golf course and swear or beat a club on the ground, but IMO it should be very rare. With Eldrick, it is to be expected. Ultimately, it shows a fundamental lack of respect for the game that quite frankly that I could do without.

Since this is the Masters thread, to post something Masters related, I will really enjoy the final round tomorrow. It is almost always riveting with many twists and turns. The only negative will be the unwarranted time that will be wasted showing and talking about Eldrick's final round....hopefully, CBS can keep that to under 5 minutes. Now if Eldrick goes out and shoots a 61 or 62, posts an early low score, it will be warranted, but not to the level that CBS will take it.

I think Eldrick plays a few more tournaments than what your're implying, but I get your point. I agree and disagree with it. Yes, for Jack it was an occupation. I think Tiger would benefit from playing a lot more. He might be able to figure out his swing.

But I do get what you're saying. Anyways, I'm really looking forward to tomorrow as well. Shaping up to be a GREAT Sunday, hopefully quite a memorable one.

 

[Honor&Glory]

Ill say it: fuck tiger woods, his whining, club throwing, cussing and his fist pumping. Fuck his skanks, his roids and his knee. I hope he never wins another major and spends the rest of his miserable existence after golf alone and bitter.

He is not and will never be the greatest no matter how much the media wants him to be. Jack will always have that title.

 

[billmac91]

It's hard to make such a bold declaration like WolverineMike did, but he has a point that actually a lot of professionals and analysts share. Tiger absolutely demolished the competition from 1999-2002. Then for some inexplicable reason, he decided to fire Butch Harmon and make all sorts of swing changes.

-12 in the 2000 U.S. Open when nobody even finished under par.
-19 in the Open Championship in 2000
-18 in the 2000 PGA Championship
-3 in the 2002 U.S. Open when nobody finished under par

7 (half of his) major victories from 1999-2002.
27 PGA Tour victories from 1999-2002.
6 wins in a row in 2000.

I'm a big Tiger fan, but there are multiple things about his "previous" swing.

1. The torque he was putting on his body wasn't sustainable, he had to change it to create longevity

2. Most on tour think he was juicing, and the added bulk made his old swing inconsistent...again it had to change.

Whether he was juicing or not, he got too big, and it is causing injuries now (achilles, knee).

I still think he breaks Jack's record...people just don't give enough thought to how long these guys can play into their career. I could even see Tiger getting his 19th victory while he's in his 50's. We're talking about golf...not shooting guard for the Chicago Bulls

 

[ImFrigginFly]

 

[Gatorubet]

"Breakfast is just the beginning"

 

[stowfan]

I still think the biggest thing is, his dad is no longer there.

 

[cincibuck]

Tiger has a few records too, ya know.

Results timeline
Tournament 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999
The Masters T41 LA CUT 1 T8 T18
U.S. Open WD T82 T19 T18 T3
The Open Championship T68[13] T22 LA T24 3 T7
PGA Championship DNP DNP T29 T10 1
Tournament 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009
The Masters 5 1 1 T15 T22 1 T3 T2 2 T6
U.S. Open 1 T12 1 T20 T17 2 CUT T2 1 T6
The Open Championship 1 T25 T28 T4 T9 1 1 T12 DNP CUT
PGA Championship 1 T29 2 T39 T24 T4 1 1 DNP 2
Tournament 2010 2011
The Masters T4 T4
U.S. Open T4 DNP
The Open Championship T23 DNP
PGA Championship T28 CUT
LA = Low Amateur
DNP = did not play
WD = withdrew
CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" = tied

Nicklaus holds the record for most runner-up finishes in majors with 19.
Nicklaus holds the record for most top-five finishes in major championships with 56.
Nicklaus holds the record for most top-10 finishes in major championships with 73. This is 25 and 27 more than the next players Sam Snead (48) and Tom Watson (46), respectively.

I don't see anything near 19,56 and 73 in Tiger's hand.
Read 'em and weep.

 

[ImFrigginFly]

Probably not. At the same time, you have to recognize that Tiger also obliterated some other records.

Anyways, you win. Jack is the G.O.A.T. Now let's get down to watching some great golf today!

 

[Honor&Glory]

I'm a big Tiger fan, but there are multiple things about his "previous" swing.

1. The torque he was putting on his body wasn't sustainable, he had to change it to create longevity

2. Most on tour think he was juicing, and the added bulk made his old swing inconsistent...again it had to change.

Whether he was juicing or not, he got too big, and it is causing injuries now (achilles, knee).

I still think he breaks Jack's record...people just don't give enough thought to how long these guys can play into their career. I could even see Tiger getting his 19th victory while he's in his 50's. We're talking about golf...not shooting guard for the Chicago Bulls

It is golf, that's for sure...but at the rate his body and mind are breaking down and the continued reshaping of the golf courses to make them longer and more difficult in the face of ridiculous club and ball technology, I just don't see it...

And the point nobody mentions when defending Kitty is that much unlike Kitty's heyday, the field is much more competitive with stars that have game and youth on their side...Tiger isn't just going to turn 25 again and have guys like McIlroy wet themselves.

 

[BB73]

Hate is too strong a word for me.

But I root against Tiger because the record of 18 majors is held by a Buckeye with a great deal of class, because Tiger displays poor sportsmanship on the course, and because the media's over-attention to him takes away from the rest of the tournament. Those who won't watch the tournament when Tiger isn't in contention aren't real golf fans, and those who don't have a direct financial benefit from the PGA's popularity shouldn't care how many others are watching on TV.

If you want to keep talking a bout Tiger, please do it here, rather than in the Masters thread.

 

[Jake]

I still think the biggest thing is, his dad is no longer there.

Some dads were never there in the first place. Tiger was VERY fortunate in this regard.

 

[Jake]

If you want to keep talking a bout Tiger, please do it here, rather than in the Masters thread.

I agree. The Master's thread should be about players who are actually in contention to win it.

 

[A Pac]

I don't hate the guy but I do hate the attention he still gets to this day. They would rather show him when he's dead out of it than show the leaders. It's disgusting. I do love watching this creep fail though. How anyone can root for him is beyond me.