For fans of Tiger Woods, here鈥檚 the good news: The 544th-ranked player in the world will tee off tomorrow at the Honda Classic, as sure a sign as any that the back problems requiring him to undergo surgery last year, his fourth in a span of three years, have been satisfactorily addressed. Sure, his presence on tour for the second straight week is aided in no small measure by his missed cut at the Riviera. Nonetheless, his willingness to subject his body to the rigors of competitive golf sans restraint speaks volumes of his convalescence.
And now the bad news: Not counting Woods鈥 participation at the Hero World Challenge under friendly and controlled conditions late last year, he has been nowhere close to respectable with a driver in his hands. He hit only 17 of 56 fairways at the Farmers Insurance Open last month, and 16 of 36 at the Genesis Open last week. And it鈥檚 not as if he has wielded his irons with the accuracy he needs to correct his mistakes off the tee; in the aforesaid tournaments, he was just 58 of 108 in Greens in Regulation all told.
True, Woods has never been straight off the tee. And, true, he has at least been long, yet another proof that his tweaked mechanics don鈥檛 prevent him from swinging with power. On the other hand, he has had far too many two-way misses for comfort, making on-course corrections difficult at best. 鈥淚t is what it is,鈥 he noted. 鈥淚t was tough on me.鈥 And it figures to be the same for a while, especially in light of his decision not to rely on any swing coach after severing his ties with Chris Como just before heading into his event in the Bahamas.
For Woods, there鈥檚 only one solution: More reps. Which is why he鈥檚 at the Honda Classic, and why he will likely be at a handful more stops before his scheduled date with Augusta National in April. Indeed, for all his travails, he remains confident of contending at the Masters. And, creditably, he has done well regardless of his level of sharpness; needless to say, he relies as much on knowledge of the terrain as in his talent to stay competitive. Of course, it鈥檚 one thing to be on the leader board, and quite another to be at the top. For that, he will have to bring much, much more than his surprisingly solid short game.
Anthony L. Cuaycong has been writing Courtside since 大象传媒 introduced a Sports section in 1994. He is the Senior Vice-President and General Manager of Basic Energy Corp.
