Some kids are born with a baseball glove, for others their favorite toy is a football, Tiger Woods had a golf club in his hand from the minute he arrived in the world. At age 2, Tiger appeared with his father, Earl, on the Mike Sullivan show to show off his driving skills. Since then, Woods has become one of the most widely known people in the world, let alone in sports. My fandom with TW began in 1996 when he came back from a 4 down deficit to win his 3rd straight U.S. Amateur Championship. However, watching Woods domination of Augusta National at the 1997 Masters led me to realize I was watching the beginning of a legendary career
Nearly two decades, and 14 major championships later, there is no doubt that Tiger Woods is one of the greatest athletes ever. However, lately, he has become known more for what is going on off the course rather than on it. Woods’ personal issues are more than well documented, and a variety of injuries have kept Tiger away from the tee box. Woods has not won a major since the 2008 U.S. Open, where he outlasted Rocco Mediate in a playoff, with a fracture in his leg. The former world number one has not won a tournament of any kind since the 2011 Players Championship. Woods has not even played the weekend in a major since finishing tied for 17th at the last year’s Masters. Woods would go on to miss the cut in each of the three other majors in 2015.
After taking the entire 2016 season off to rehab from injury, Woods was expected at the 2017 season opener,The Safeway Open, last week. However, the hopes of Tiger fans were dashed when Woods pulled out citing his game not being ready for PGA Tour golf. A source close to Woods however, said he was “flushing everything”, during practice sessions. This Tiger fan is left to wonder if perhaps the once most confident athlete I have ever seen no longer believe he can win.
So we arrive back to the original question of this post, will Tiger Woods win again? As much as I hope I’m wrong, my answer is no! Woods turns 41 in December, couple his age and the rash of recent injuries, I see more breakdown headed his way. If Woods body doesn’t betray him, there are so many good players capable of beating the once unbeatable machine. Thus, it will be a monumental task for Tiger to raise another trophy.
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