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August 9, 2010

Woods worst game ever

Posted: 06:25 AM ET

Imagine if, after Michael Jordan won his fifth NBA Championship, he could no longer make jump shots or even dunk. Imagine if, nine months after Muhammad Ali beat Joe Frazier in Madison Square Garden he began losing to everyone... even unknowns. Imagine if, after Jerry Rice’s record-setting performance in winning Super Bowl XXIII, he dropped every pass thrown his way.

You’d think you were in the Twilight Zone, right? That’s what we’re witnessing with Tiger Woods, folks. His disastrous 18-over-par performance at the Bridgestone Invitational is the worst four rounds of golf he’s ever played as a pro. And it happened on a course he won 70% of the times he played it.

Less than one year after winning the FedEx Cup, given annually to the world’s top golfer, Tiger can’t make four-foot putts. He can’t hit fairways or even the broad side of a barn. Most of us thought he’d struggle when he returned, but not like this. At first he looked like a shell of his former self. Now he looks like he’s in the movie “Freaky Friday” and traded bodies with Jamie Lee Curtis.

If the lowest point in his personal life was giving his public apology, this is the lowest point in his professional life.

Sunday was the first time Tiger has more or less admitted his personal problems may be getting the best of him.

“It’s been a long year,” Tiger said, looking like a beaten-down beatnik sporting his new goatee.

Up until Sunday, Tiger shrugged off the idea that he couldn’t focus when it came time to tee off.

This also could be the first time Tiger’s staunchest fans, who’ve stood defiantly in defense of him like the Britney Spears fan under the sheet, may actually start thinking what I said after the British Open: His days of dominating the sport could be over. If they say they aren’t thinking that then they’re lying or don’t want to admit it.

Yes, he can still turn it around. But that could take a year or maybe two. And even if he does get his mind right, at 34 his body may not follow as easily. And while he takes his time to return to form, his competition continues to get better and more importantly doesn’t fear him like they used to.

Tiger Woods' wife, when she found out about his infidelities, probably felt like she didn’t know him anymore.

Now the golf world and Tiger’s fans probably feel the same way.

Thoughts? Post away.

Filed under: Golf • Rafer Weigel • Sports • Tiger Woods


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SD_CD   August 9th, 2010 6:34 am ET

It's hard to feel sorry for a guy whose posse instructs waiters to "please not address Mr. Woods directly" and is routinely listed as one of the worst celebrity tippers.


J Wykes   August 9th, 2010 6:53 am ET

Maybe Tiger does need steroids and his swing coach,


Mark H   August 9th, 2010 7:01 am ET

I think a big problem with Tiger's game is his working out, if you have noticed the larger he gets the worse his game gets, just a thought.


J W   August 9th, 2010 7:01 am ET

It's good to watch golf and have someone in the highlight besides Tiger. He's a has been.


Cybrider   August 9th, 2010 7:08 am ET

I understand, but I have compassion for a person who has failed and made mistakes in life and tries to make restitution and to change for the better. I accept his apology to me, and I support his efforts to get his personal life to a great state. Being at the low point of his golf game and career is a humbling experience, one that will help him to reach new heights in his life as well as in the world of golf. I wish him and his family well.


m w   August 9th, 2010 7:12 am ET

At least he's not swearing and throwing clubs anymore. Therapy must be helping.


Karen Delduce   August 9th, 2010 7:24 am ET

I think Tiger should remember that being a Buddhist has Karma as a reward or a downfall depending on a person's actions through life. Maybe he needs some time off to really concentrate on being a Buddhist and try to regain some good Karma.

I also believe that Tiger is so angry because he had to give up HALF of his money to Elin, plus the public disgrace he caused. He blames everyone else, and all the news that was reported about him and all of those women, the total opposite of his wife. He felt entitled to being with all of those other women and htat's when people in the public eye cause their own downfall. The arrogance and sense of entitlement to do what they want with no consequences to themselves, is what brings them down. He was lying to everyone, to his fans, to his admirers, and to himself.

If people don't believe in Karma just take a look at his performance this weekend. That is Tiger's Karma, and until he makes himself right, right with what he did and believes that he caused his own downfall, his return to the top golfer in the world won't happen, He needs to really believe and accept his resonsibility for the entire fiasco of his life, and find a way to make peace with those he hurt, and become more humble and less angry. Until then, nothing will go right for him, except dating porn stars and cocktail waitresses,and paid party hostesses. He put himself in with them, and now he has to know he was the cause of his loss of the game. Maybe he doesn't want to play golf anymore. But if that is his choice, then he has to make peace with all the money he had to give away, and he will have to find a way to earn it back if the money is most important to him.


J.R   August 9th, 2010 7:55 am ET

Cant help but feel sorry for the man, his personal life is affecting his game waaay too much. I think a little extra time off to re-hone his skills is all he needs. Plus a little time outside of the public eye wouldn't hurt either.


E. A.   August 9th, 2010 7:55 am ET

I believe we are putting too much in to this, slumps in sports come and go, he will be alright, as this too shall pass, what bothers me is the haters, because he is not winning, everybody is taking shots.


Darryl   August 9th, 2010 7:57 am ET

Tiger should not play any more after the PGA, he should forget about golf until next year and concentrate on his kids, and get away from the media. He also needs to get a swing instructor he can trust and rebuild his mental strength he had before his sex scape...I believe he will break Jack's majors record some day!!


steven b   August 9th, 2010 7:58 am ET

This is laugh. Let's brow beat him some more and ask why he's not performing 'up to par'. Obviously his life is not right and with all the media attention, it may never be. Why is it fair for someone such as Leann Rimes who's caught cheating and it 's barely a blip on the radar, but Woods cheating is an international issue? Let's talk about double standards.


kim   August 9th, 2010 8:01 am ET

I think after his divorce his game will pick up. Besides the more he wins the more he makes the more he pays out.


Sue from WV   August 9th, 2010 8:58 am ET

Tiger's game just goes to show that no matter how big you are, you are affected by what is going on in your life!


Susan Cardwell, MA, LPC-S   August 9th, 2010 8:58 am ET

When a person ceases an addictive (compensatory) behavior it typically takes time to achieve homeostasis (balance of the system). Tiger lost his stress relief behaviors AND his marriage. He may need more time to deal with the changes, do grief work, and learn replacement skills, before his pre-crisis performance resumes.


sue barron   August 9th, 2010 9:00 am ET

Tiger should keep playing. He may not be good at being a husband, but he is a great golfer. He needs to do what he knows how to do well. He is my favorite golfer. Without him on the links, TV golf is boring. Michelson is terrific to watch, also, and he seems to know what being a husband is all about. Tiger and Phil are premier golfers, and they need to keep on driving and putting.


Mary   August 9th, 2010 9:01 am ET

You reap what you sow or what goes around comes around. Tiger lost his family now he's losing what he loves the most, his game!! Doesn't he know the old saying? Cheaters never win!!


The Professor   August 9th, 2010 9:05 am ET

There is one simple answer as to why he's playing badly: he stopped playing after his cheating scandal. He never should've stopped playing. As a top athlete, training is his job. If I were caught cheating, I could not afford to stop and rehab my family. I would have to do both at the same time. Tiger could not "afford" (I mean skillwise, not financially) to have taken time off and expect to return as the player he was when he left. If he wants to reclaim his dominance, he's gotta forget about being likeable, his deformed reputation, everything except his family and being the best. Hopefully, focusing in his family and being the best are compatible goals. Who knows?


lonnie   August 9th, 2010 9:21 am ET

Hi. Rafer They say Tiger had all those girl friends, maybe he should go back to what works for him to win in the game he loves. Go tiger. Lonnie


keith   August 9th, 2010 9:51 am ET

There's one word why he's playing so bad.... Kama.


keith   August 9th, 2010 9:53 am ET

Whoops Karma...


JAY   August 9th, 2010 9:57 am ET

Tiger needs a major breakthrough, he should learn to separate his personal problems from his athletic integrity. I suggest he talks to a very good psychotherapist intensively or get intensive couching sessions with Anthony Robbins. Dr. Jay, Orlando, FL.


Ted   August 9th, 2010 10:54 am ET

Given that there is apparently a divorce in the works that is allegedly more generous then he 'needs to be', I think he needs to consider the following if he is going to divorce:

Have a press conference... Say yeap, I nailed those [women] and it was stupid. I'm getting a divorce, and it's not going to be pretty. I love my job, I love my children, but I'm tired of playing the over conservative PR game. My personal life sucks, it's going to suck, but I will get through it. The sooner I come to terms with the fact everyone is going to know the truth and admit it, the sooner I can move on.


Rachel U   August 9th, 2010 12:19 pm ET

Tiger Tiger Tiger .... You're still a star in the sack in my book. Tiger, since you will be teeing off early each weekend now, you just need to go to sleep earliar now! See, I understand why you played poorly.

The U.


Despot   August 9th, 2010 6:43 pm ET

You see Tiger lose but in reality he's winning a very deceiving match, a more important one:

What he's doing now by losing the golf game is actually winning the pity and sympathy of the public. When he's going to reach a complete low in his game, thus a maximum height in public compassion, he will all of a sudden remember how to play good golf.

Think about it, what would people say or feel if he was beating everybody on the tee, after making such a disgraceful family stunt. No one would feel sorry for him, on the contrary..


Kathryn, Gretchen, Jon, and Lloyd Brinker   August 10th, 2010 1:04 am ET

First of all, it was very "Hot in Cleveland" on Saturday (and we are not talking about the loved Betty White sitcom) !! We are referring to our
beautiful girl Robin and her singing with Jim Brickman in concert !!! Of course, our Robin received a well-deserved standing ovation from all her loving fans !! What an honor to be on stage with such a talented artist like the world-loved Jim Brickman !! Bravo to our Robin !!! Now to Mr. Tiger Woods: we must admit we were very saddened to see such a poor performance by Tiger this past weekend at the Bridgestone Invitational in Akron, Ohio !! Oh, yes: Tiger crossed the line big time with his unwisely indiscretions–but who hasn't these days !! He chose to participate in various tournaments this year and not sit out . . . but try to put on a good front for the circus media followers !! We feel that Tiger is still paying for his mistakes; after all, he lost his good name according to many skeptical individuals. But mainly, he will be without his wife and children as a complete family !! We wish Tiger the best for the coming events–and as we all know, he will be back (as golf is his middle name) !! Hope your Tuesday is a good one, Robin; and we love Ya, our Ohio girl !! Robin's Follies.


Bedrock   August 10th, 2010 2:03 pm ET

Woods has not stopped throwing clubs, screaming the F-word, or pouting like a little baby. He acts "uninterested" on the golf course because he has trouble breaking 75. His sorry excuses (his caddy, it "being a long year") are pathetic. His swing coaches quit him, not the other way around. He is a remorseless creep. He does not intimidate anyone anymore, and he can't stand it that the whole field in the tournament no longer rolls over and plays dead for him. His putting has deteriorated, and he knows that no swing coach can remedy that. Hogan couldn't salvage his putting stroke, nor could Miller, or Watson. Woods will probably win again, but he will never dominate again, as he has in the past. He is the worst behaved player on Tour, and one of the worst ever. He is in no way a role model for young kids. He has been exposed for what he is, and he knows it. There is no way he can stay on top.


JW   August 11th, 2010 9:24 am ET

RIGHT ON BEDROCK!!!!


MatiValhalla   October 27th, 2010 6:08 pm ET

Tiger Woods is past history.
Irrelevant. Over. Passé. Done. Toast.
An all-out womanizer, horrible tipper, faux humanitarian, modern-day-rat-pack-wannabe. A blame-everybody-but-himself-in-all-things, loser.

Golf game off?
It's the caddy, the too tight shoes, the wind, the crowd.

Life not going right?
It's the media, the press, the ex-wife, the gold-diggers.

I think it's the inflated ego and the celebrity-Frankenstein created by his own mind, his 'possé' and the legions wanting to cash in on his celebrity.

So he can swing a club? Yawn.
He will forever be known as an adulterous, pandering, sex-creep. What a great dad he must be.

Maybe he should hang with his boy Kanye and really listen to the lyrics of the song, "GoldDigger."

Fittingly and symbolically, the golf course always harbors that 'dog leg left,' and when I hear that phrase, I'll always think of a big capital "L"... for Tiger.

As in, "LOSER."


skip vaughn   November 15th, 2010 3:30 pm ET

Tiger is far from being finished! Not even close! Yes, he is suffering from his self made immoral sex disaster. But he will recover from this self created mess. We have not seen the last of this great champion. If he can finish a major championship game with out giving up fighting a busted yp leg, and with stand all the racial slurs and insults coming up through the ranks, he will most assuredly be back to make the world of golf quake again! You can count on it.! Go Tiger!



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