Tiger Woods Master Catch-All Discussion

[iacas]

I don't think that makes a ton of sense. I think he was hoping rehab would do the trick.

[iacas]

Uhhhhhh.

[nevets88]

We already know he's playing Riviera, this is standard press release stuff, but there are two bits about his junior days I never read about, I'm fairly a completionist on Tiger Woods lore.

Quote

The second time I tried to qualify to play Riviera, I was 15 and we played the South Course at Los Serranos Country Club. It was a moment I will never forget. I was playing the best round of my life and was 8-under par through 17 holes, thinking I was actually going to qualify for a PGA TOUR event. The head pro came up to me and said, “I have to tell you, because I know it’s going to change how you play this last hole,” which was a par-5 with a second shot over water. “There are already two guys at 10-under and only two make it.”

I said, “What?” I had to eagle the last hole to get into a playoff and I hit my second shot in the water, made bogey and shot 65.

The next year, 1992, I received a sponsor’s exemption and didn’t play that badly, shooting 72-75. Maybe I could have made up a couple more shots per round, but I felt pretty good about it.

Then I looked at the scoreboard and I’m 17 strokes behind Davis Love III. It was eye-opening knowing that I was really not that good. I thought I could play the game, but obviously I wasn’t worth a lick compared to these guys and had a long way to go.

http://genesisopen.com/news/tigers-blog-returning-riviera

[nevets88]

Sam Snead on Woods

[jamo]

On 2/1/2018 at 8:37 PM, nevets88 said:

We already know he's playing Riviera, this is standard press release stuff, but there are two bits about his junior days I never read about, I'm fairly a completionist on Tiger Woods lore.

http://genesisopen.com/news/tigers-blog-returning-riviera

https://www.si.com/vault/1991/03/25/123864/golf-cub-a-mere-15-the-precocious-eldrick-tiger-woods-is-already-stalking-the-pros

[nevets88]

1 hour ago, jamo said:

https://www.si.com/vault/1991/03/25/123864/golf-cub-a-mere-15-the-precocious-eldrick-tiger-woods-is-already-stalking-the-pros

That was a good read. So Woods was misremembering? That his Dad told him he needed to eagle?

[Valleygolfer]

On 1/24/2018 at 2:41 PM, iacas said:

I don't think that makes a ton of sense. I think he was hoping rehab would do the trick.

Fusion is a considerably more invasive than a discectomy, so conservative at the start. Plus fusion causes a loss of mobility in the spine, decreases stress absorption capabilities and causes wear on other levels of the spine that have to take up slack. In a sport where flexibility/mobility is imperative, fusion would be avoided if possible.

[iacas]

8 minutes ago, Valleygolfer said:

Fusion is a considerably more invasive than a discectomy, so conservative at the start. Plus fusion causes a loss of mobility in the spine, decreases stress absorption capabilities and causes wear on other levels of the spine that have to take up slack. In a sport where flexibility/mobility is imperative, fusion would be avoided if possible.

My only points, and obviously I'm not a doctor, but my only points are:

• He'd been trying to "rehab" it for quite a few years. I thought he should have gotten the fusion earlier. I mean, after one or two tries at rehab, or one or two discectomies… isn't that enough to know it's not going to work?
• The vertebrae he had fused aren't particularly mobile. They have a range of only about 5° of twisting. So… not much range would be lost, and not much stress placed on other joints nearby.

That's all… I just feel like maybe he might wish he did it a year or six months earlier.

[woodzie264]

20 minutes ago, Valleygolfer said:

Fusion is a considerably more invasive than a discectomy, so conservative at the start. Plus fusion causes a loss of mobility in the spine, decreases stress absorption capabilities and causes wear on other levels of the spine that have to take up slack. In a sport where flexibility/mobility is imperative, fusion would be avoided if possible.

Agreed. And not true of everyone, but in younger people (which Tiger is), once a fusion is done, they will likely require other levels to be fused later (7-8yrs) as the adjacent levels start to wear and break down now that they are moving/fulcruming on an immobile segment. 

Seeing @iacas point though, as competitive as Tiger is, I would've thought he would have made the choice for a fusion before he did...just being driven by his competitive nature. 

[nevets88]

From today, Woods iron off tee

 

 

[nevets88]

 

[Valleygolfer]

1 minute ago, iacas said:

My only points, and obviously I'm not a doctor, but my only points are:

• He'd been trying to "rehab" it for quite a few years. I thought he should have gotten the fusion earlier. I mean, after one or two tries at rehab, or one or two discectomies… isn't that enough to know it's not going to work?
• The vertebrae he had fused aren't particularly mobile. They have a range of only about 5° of twisting. So… not much range would be lost, and not much stress placed on other joints nearby.

That's all… I just feel like maybe he might wish he did it a year or six months earlier.

I'm sure it was a combination of his personal research, doctor's recommendations and recovery times.

[iacas]

http://golfweek.com/2018/02/13/tiger-woods-changes-driver-shaft-and-loft-after-bad-driving-at-torrey-pines/

Quote

Woods, who tees off at 10:22 a.m. Eastern on Thursday with Justin Thomas and Rory McIlroy, returned to a Matrix Ozik TP7HDe X-flex shaft that he last used in the 2015 Wyndham Championship. 

“We could all see how bad I was driving it,” Woods said Tuesday in a news conference from Riviera Country Club, where he is playing for the first time since 2006.

The more “stout” shaft is also complemented by a driver head change adding nearly a degree of loft to his TaylorMade M3.

Stiffer shaft + 1 degree. Got it.

[jbishop15]

god bless PGA Tour Live, which is going to be the only thing I'll be watching until TV coverage kicks in. Can't wait to watch Tiger play!!!

1 hour ago, iacas said:

http://golfweek.com/2018/02/13/tiger-woods-changes-driver-shaft-and-loft-after-bad-driving-at-torrey-pines/

Stiffer shaft + 1 degree. Got it.

You think that'll help him out, or at best just short-circuit his brain á la Johnny Miller at the 1973 US Open when he opened his stance on a whim?

[nevets88]

 

[jshots]

What are peoples thoughts on why the driver is so off?

Also @iacas just curious if you notice increased traffic to thesandtrap.com when Tiger is playing.

[iacas]

40 minutes ago, jshots said:

What are peoples thoughts on why the driver is so off?

Also @iacas just curious if you notice increased traffic to thesandtrap.com when Tiger is playing.

We do, though we get so much traffic it's a small bump only. You see it as more of a small bump if you consider, for example, only the Tournament discussion topics.

[turtleback]

41 minutes ago, jshots said:

What are peoples thoughts on why the driver is so off?

Also @iacas just curious if you notice increased traffic to thesandtrap.com when Tiger is playing.

I dunno about traffic, but the Pebble Beach event that just ended had a thread with a total of 42 posts, while the Genesis has 38 already and it has barely started.  So interest seems way up when he plays.