subject: Tiger Woods: From Mocked to Top 10 Finish [print this page] Tiger Woods: From Mocked to Top 10 Finish
Yes, Tiger Woods hit a 122-yard drive in the second round of the WGC Cadillac Championship, and later in that round hit a pop-up drive that wasn't much better.
And yet, come Sunday, Woods finished 10th.
Woods is playing the worst golf of his career, by far, but something I've said before bears repeating: His results are much better than you'd think based on the hullabaloo his poor play is causing.
To hear the wailing that takes place after every errant shot by Woods (and I plead guilty to piling on once or twice), you'd think that Woods was in the midst of some Ian Baker-Finch-style meltdown. But the truth is, Woods is closer to being the Woods of old than he is to, say, playing golf clubs for sale at the current level of John Daly.
Which is not to say that a 122-yard drive by Woods doesn't deserve being remarked upon. Shots like that are things we've never seen from Woods before; that makes them remarkable.
And we can't know what's in Woods' head. Perhaps his mental state is fragile and his confidence is shattered; perhaps a few more shots like that woeful drive will snowball into a true downward spiral in terms of scoring. But I doubt it.
Fact is, Woods, playing as he is right now, is (off the top of my head) about the 35th best player in the world right now. Woods could continue playing exactly as he is right now at a level that sends commentators into histrionics and never have to worry about losing his card.
Here are Woods' finishes in his last 10 tournaments played (starting with the most recent and going back): tied 10th; tied 33rd; tied 20th; tied 44th; 2nd; tied 6th; tied 15th; tied 11th; tied 12th; tied 28th.
Those aren't even close to the finishes we'd expect from the pre-2010 Woods with ping g15 irons - but they are probably a lot better than many fans would have guessed. Six Top 15s, seven Top 20s in his last 10 starts. I hear from casual golf fans (and not-so-casual Woods haters) all the time who have the sense based on what they are picking up from television and newspapers and talk radio that Woods is in an utter freefall on the golf course. But he's not. He's just not Tiger Woods right now.
Woods is hitting some weird shots. He's putting worse than he probably has at any point in his career. And yet he's still posting better than average finishes. That's a testament to a truly phenomenal talent. And it's one reason I have no doubt that Woods will become, once again, the dominant player in r7 cgb max irons . The only questions are when; and whether it will happen with or without Sean Foley.
