Tiger as Captain's pick for Pres. Cup?

[iacas]

Originally Posted by Dave H

On Saturday Tiger and Dustin lost their match but I believe Tiger hit 17 of 18 greens, he just wasn't hitting putts. That's playing pretty well if you ask me. On Sunday it seemed to be more of the same only he started hitting putts. I thought he was playing pretty well. I'd call his 2000 US open performance more along the lines of "special" not just pretty well.

Yeah, if 2000 at Pebble is "really well" then I'd like to know what "awesome" is like, or "virtually perfect" or "stupendous" or "great" is like. :-)

[Jmdmbike]

When all is said and done, golf is more compelling to watch when Tiger is in the field and doing well. He's an elite athlete and unique talent and frankly, since he's fallen down the rankings, watching him work his way back up and continue chasing Jack's record just makes things that much more interesting. Golf needs Tiger in the mix.

[makaveli]

Let Tiger train during the Winter and at the beginning of the 2012 season we will see if he is really back or not.

Tiger played pretty good this week, not bad, but not good either imho. I know there are people waiting for their hero to come back and kick every1's ass, but this Tiger is an average Tiger, remember that President Cup is different from the Ryder cup and from a 1st tier PGA Tour Event.

I'm happy Tiger is not playing as the 2011 PGA Championship but getting excited for this Tiger... too early! (imho)

p.s. I would be happy to see Tiger contending in top events too!

[jamo]

Let Tiger train during the Winter and at the beginning of the 2012 season we will see if he is really back or not.

He's been talking about reps for a while now. My mid-season 2012 we should know if he was right.

[The_Pharaoh]

Originally Posted by iacas

Yeah, if 2000 at Pebble is "really well" then I'd like to know what "awesome" is like, or "virtually perfect" or "stupendous" or "great" is like. :-)

OK, Pebble Beach 2000 wasn't the best example, but I would say he played really well in the last Ryder Cup. He played better in the Presidents, but not really well. I bet Tiger doesn't rate this performance as "really well".

I think there is a lot of wanting Tiger to be back, probably because of Erik's comments in another post about him being very important for the game of golf in the US. I think that desire, plus the fact he is changing his swing to a "one-plane, centered pivot" swing, is driving people's opinion of the current state of his game.

[iacas]

Originally Posted by The_Pharaoh

OK, Pebble Beach 2000 wasn't the best example, but I would say he played really well in the last Ryder Cup. He played better in the Presidents, but not really well. I bet Tiger doesn't rate this performance as "really well".

I chose the words "really well" for a reason.

Because Tiger said "I struck the ball really well all week."

I agreed with his assessment, but since you added the last sentence there, it was worth trotting out the reasoning for that specific phrase.

Originally Posted by The_Pharaoh

I think there is a lot of wanting Tiger to be back, probably because of Erik's comments in another post about him being very important for the game of golf in the US. I think that desire, plus the fact he is changing his swing to a "one-plane, centered pivot" swing, is driving people's opinion of the current state of his game.

I couldn't care less if Tiger swung like Eamonn Darcy - Tiger being back in the mix makes golf more exciting, period. He's a once-a-generation (at most) talent. People want to see records broken in their lifetimes.

[Joe Mcc 69]

I like what I have seen with his swing lately.He is really balanced better and seems to be swinging within himself and not trying to hit the ball 340 off the tee each time.The most important thing that he showed was his putting stroke in that last round of match play.I haven't seen him putt that consistant in a long time.Who knows,maybe this is finally the begining of getting the Tiger back that we all have enjoyed watching over the years.I hope so,he's good for the game.

[turtleback]

Originally Posted by The_Pharaoh

To be honest, I didn't watch much at all but from what I did see, and from what I've heard/read, Tiger wasn't playing really well. Really well for me is his 2000 US Open performance. That's playingreally well. I admit, he is playing better (not difficult), but he still has some way to go imho.

I know what you are saying, but I'm not judging the health of golf on TV viewership. It's a shame the game in the US needs those 5 million people completely disinterested in golf to tune in to solely watch Tiger play each week. The global economic crisis has done more to damage the game of golf than Tiger's absence.

To your first point, that is absurd.  By your criteria he has never played really well except for 4 days back in 2000.

To your second point, on what basis do you say golf has done well without him.  Not only is viewership down but playing by regular folks is down as well.

[turtleback]

Originally Posted by Joe Mcc 69

I like what I have seen with his swing lately.He is really balanced better and seems to be swinging within himself and not trying to hit the ball 340 off the tee each time.The most important thing that he showed was his putting stroke in that last round of match play.I haven't seen him putt that consistant in a long time.Who knows,maybe this is finally the begining of getting the Tiger back that we all have enjoyed watching over the years.I hope so,he's good for the game.

I was also encouraged by the fact that his improvement is more broad than previously.  It was pretty obvious that his focus on his full swing was taking time away from his short game, particularly his bunker game.  But this week he was much better out of the bunkers, culminating in that shot on the clinching hole.

[topspin4hand]

Actually, the past 2 years Tiger has been around and the stories have been about when he will get back to form.  In addition, most people involved in the business of golf are quick to acknowledge the obvious: Tiger is important to golf. TV ratings, sponsorships, ticket sales, prize money and charitable dollars are all noticeably better when he's there.  This has been shown empirically.

Originally Posted by The_Pharaoh

I don't agree that golf needs Tiger back though. He's been missing for 3 years now and golf has gotten on without him perfectly fine.

I agree that had he not played instead of there being very little interest, there would have been ZERO interest.

[Hackforfun]

Tiger should play more golf Down Under. It seems to agree with him. These last two tournaments are the first time since his come back I felt Tiger could start winning tournaments again. Next year is going to be real interesting for Tiger watchers.

[michaeljames92]

That's because you actually need a golfing brain to play some of these golf courses. He plays his best when scoring conditions aren't easy.

Originally Posted by Hackforfun

Tiger should play more golf Down Under. It seems to agree with him. These last two tournaments are the first time since his come back I felt Tiger could start winning tournaments again. Next year is going to be real interesting for Tiger watchers.

[normdamarine]

Everyone currently on tour and those who have played on "the tour" over the last decade so walk up to Tiger, look him in the eyes and say thank you for making my bank account so large!!!

[sean_miller]

Originally Posted by turtleback

Quote:

Originally Posted by The_Pharaoh

To be honest, I didn't watch much at all but from what I did see, and from what I've heard/read, Tiger wasn't playing really well. Really well for me is his 2000 US Open performance. That's playingreally well. I admit, he is playing better (not difficult), but he still has some way to go imho.

I know what you are saying, but I'm not judging the health of golf on TV viewership. It's a shame the game in the US needs those 5 million people completely disinterested in golf to tune in to solely watch Tiger play each week. The global economic crisis has done more to damage the game of golf than Tiger's absence.

To your first point, that is absurd.  By your criteria he has never played really well except for 4 days back in 2000.

To your second point, on what basis do you say golf has done well without him.  Not only is viewership down but playing by regular folks is down as well.

Since late 2008 the flimsy house of cards lives many companies, countries, and average citizens were living in the name of "economic growth" has come crashing down.  As much as people miss watching Tiger Woods on television, you can't eat rounds of golf and new Nike TW irons for breakfast. People have different priorities than they did 5 years ago.

BTW, even when the PGA Tour viewership was on the rise, there were still only so many golf fans to go around. The LPGA, Champions Tour, and even amateur golf used to matter ~ 15 years ago. Now who really cares? If Tiger isn't playing ratings are down for Tiger-less PGA Tour events. When Tiger is playing then already dwindling ratings for other events go down the tubes. Did anyone watch the LPGA's tour championship this weekend? Anyone?

[The_Pharaoh]

Originally Posted by turtleback

To your first point, that is absurd.  By your criteria he has never played really well except for 4 days back in 2000.

To your second point, on what basis do you say golf has done well without him.  Not only is viewership down but playing by regular folks is down as well.

OK, I already covered point one in another post.

Point two, I am saying the global crisis has screwed golf more than Tiger not playing. Regular folks playing is down because people cannot afford to play, probably because they've lost their jobs, not because Tiger isn't on TV every week.

[The_Pharaoh]

Originally Posted by iacas

I chose the words "really well" for a reason. Because Tiger said "I struck the ball really well all week."

That's a little bit sneaky Erik, as I did say "playing really well", not striking the ball really well. There is a big difference there. I've hit the ball really well, hit 17 GIR and shot 76. I don't consider it "playing well". I've just checked his scores at the President's Cup and, other than the final round, they add weight to my argument.

Originally Posted by iacas

I couldn't care less if Tiger swung like Eamonn Darcy - Tiger being back in the mix makes golf more exciting, period. He's a once-a-generation (at most) talent. People want to see records broken in their lifetimes.

OK, I fully agree with this. He does make golf more exciting, true. Although, I am not a Tiger fan I want him back. When the best player of all time is not playing, the game is not the same. Oh, and I stand to win 1,000 Euros if he gets to 19 Majors! ;-)

[iacas]

Originally Posted by The_Pharaoh

That's a little bit sneaky Erik, as I did say "playing really well", not striking the ball really well. There is a big difference there. I've hit the ball really well, hit 17 GIR and shot 76. I don't consider it "playing well". I've just checked his scores at the President's Cup and, other than the final round, they add weight to my argument.

Playing well and scoring well are, likewise, two different things.

[sacm3bill]

Originally Posted by sean_miller

...Did anyone watch the LPGA's tour championship this weekend? Anyone?

Yes, but only because Sandra Gal was in contention. :-)