"Slaying the Tiger" by Shane Ryan

As a follow-up to the interview I did with Shane Ryan about his book, if anyone has questions that didn't get answered (or new ones after having read the article), feel free to ask below. And I'll tag @ShaneRyan directly.

http://thesandtrap.com/b/throwing_darts/talking_to_shane_ryan_author_of_slaying_the_tiger

Hey everyone, I will be checking in throughout the day if anybody has questions. Like Jamieson said, read the interview, and check out the excerpts that ran yesterday on Golf.com and Deadspin:

Matt Every Chapter

A Few Thoughts on Augusta National

What a strange world when we have to seriously consider whether Tiger will win three more PGA Tour events in his lifetime, right? It's a real debate, though...on one hand, my brain is telling me, "don't be an idiot, of course Tiger is going to win again." On the other, his trajectory seems so awful right now that I honestly don't know. I will say "yes" to that one, but I wouldn't be surprised either way. Golf.com thinks he's already passed him ...intriguing argument.

@ShaneRyan - Really enjoying the book so far. Quick question on the Patrick Reed stuff. I was curious about his estrangement with his family. Do you have any inkling of what may have caused that? The book seems to hint that Justine and his family don't get along, but I feel like it must be something more than that.

@ShaneRay - In 2 013, Tiger made the cut in all 16 events he played in, won 5, and had $8+ million in winnings. Does a bad year in 2014 mean he has been slain, or is it just a slump?

In what way did any of the young players slay the Tiger?  Or were you just using Tiger in the title because you know that will sell books?

Thanks, and glad you're enjoying it. Aside from the details I researched and wrote in the book, it would honestly just be speculation to answer your question, because the truth is I have no idea. I think we've all probably experienced "issues" with our families. from minor to major, and we know that the reasons are very much tied into the past, and dynamics that have evolved over years and years. So in a way, I doubt there's a simple explanation, though I could probably guess at a few of key factors. But with neither side of the family speaking to me on the record about the causes of the divide, it wouldn't be responsible to say, beyond what clues we can glean on social media, or other articles like Shipnuck's at SI , which I thought was very good an informative.

Nobody knows that for sure, but my guess is we've seen the last of "great Tiger," due to a combination of age and injury. One question I think we'll always have to wonder at is why he hasn't won a major since Thanksgiving 2009, especially when he recovered his game for long stretches afterward. Coincidence, or some loss of mental sharpness, or did his immunity to pressure run out, or what?

This is an example of a passive-aggressive question, undoubtedly by somebody who hasn't read the book, but I'll answer it anyway. The title of the book, as you'd know if you read it, is more than just a reference to the young stars challenging Tiger Woods for supremacy in 2014. It's also about the image of Tiger Woods that will persist long after he's gone, and that new players will have to fight even as they compete against each other. And finally, about how the PGA Tour itself will try to transition away from what has essentially been a Tiger bubble, and get the sport to a place where it can thrive even without his influence. So it's more about the process, and the struggle, than the actual fate of Tiger Woods. Otherwise the title would have been in the past tense, "Tiger Slain" or "How They Slayed Tiger," or something equally terrible.

Enjoyed the two excerpts immensely. Thank you, Shane.

My question is about the celebrity instructors and their predominance over the last 20 years. Will Tiger's use of them lead a new generation of players to latch on to these celebrity gurus so they grow in number and become omnipresent, or will that cycle peak and will we trend back to the days when instructors and the related posse of each player remains in the background? Or is it too late because of the great amount of money in the game?

For example, take Ledbetter... please. He developed a cottage industry based on his work with Faldo, and then  instruction books, and then hawks aids and products. He seems to have developed something akin to a minor league system for new players. At the same time, you hear stories that he ruins as many players as he may have helped, including tour player who had to rebuild elsewhere. And then there is Foley, who seems to know a lot about everything but only on the surface. Yet, he uses millennial-speak that somehow relates to the younger generation. Then there is Haney, whose people say little or nothing during a session, and just poke or place you hands-on into the position they want without a why.  Are they gurus, snake oil salesmen, self-promoters, or all three?

Could be material for another book...

I see that this is already linked here but I didn't read it last summer and did yesterday (thanks @jbishop15) and found it interesting, so I'll bump the thread anyway.

http://deadspin.com/how-augusta-national-became-golfs-north-korea-1709794444

FYI, the book itself was just released in paperback: http://www.amazon.com/Slaying-Tiger-Year-Inside-Ropes/dp/0553390686/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr

It's a good book if you're a tour junkie. I read it last year when it came out, and I breezed through it. I really enjoy Shane Ryan's writing.

18 hours ago, Golfingdad said:

I see that this is already linked here but I didn't read it last summer and did yesterday (thanks @jbishop15) and found it interesting, so I'll bump the thread anyway.

http://deadspin.com/how-augusta-national-became-golfs-north-korea-1709794444

That was a great read,thanks.

On 6/14/2015 at 6:58 PM, ShaneRyan said:

This is an example of a passive-aggressive question, undoubtedly by somebody who hasn't read the book, but I'll answer it anyway. The title of the book, as you'd know if you read it, is more than just a reference to the young stars challenging Tiger Woods for supremacy in 2014. It's also about the image of Tiger Woods that will persist long after he's gone, and that new players will have to fight even as they compete against each other. And finally, about how the PGA Tour itself will try to transition away from what has essentially been a Tiger bubble, and get the sport to a place where it can thrive even without his influence. So it's more about the process, and the struggle, than the actual fate of Tiger Woods. Otherwise the title would have been in the past tense, "Tiger Slain" or "How They Slayed Tiger," or something equally terrible.

What a great answer.