Phoenix Open

[HereComeTheCats]

Some good media appearances today in Phoenix. Tiger making his return to Phoenix for the first time since 2001 and Robert Allenby trying to make a statement without answering questions.

Tiger looked relaxed and was in a good mood with the media today during his press conference. He lost a lot of weight and looks like his younger, trimmer self. (the 3 week flu diet) His swing looked a lot better and he said he's reaching driver clubhead speeds he hasn't seen in 15 years. I guess it's easy to be good natured when you're not getting criticized for poor play but this could be the start of Tiger 3.0. He's been working on his chipping to get rid of the chunks he had from trying to marry two different chipping methods. He even made fun of himself for "raising the roof" when he aced 16 in 1997 and said he hasn't played in Phoenix the past few years because of security problems that have since been fixed by the organizers.

Allenby's interview was great. He tried to keep it short by making a statement saying he doesn't remember anything (especially doesn't remember anything about a strip club) and wants everyone to let the police investigate without pesky media interference. Interference such as asking questions doubting the ridiculous story.

 

[novabball2]

would love to see Phil and Tiger paired on the weekend.

this is one of the coolest events on tour but the tour in bitter old man fashion has eliminated alot of the 16th antics. such as the caddie races (which is the best), throwing and/or kicking stuff into the crowd.


http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/golf-devil-ball-golf/pga-tour-tries-reining-in-the-fun-at-phoenix-open-16th-hole-004041789-golf.html

http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/golf-devil-ball-golf/pga-tour-tries-reining-in-the-fun-at-phoenix-open-16th-hole-004041789-golf.html

 

[TwoDecks]

I bet tiger wins another 2-3 tourneys this year and will win some more as well, however, I'd be surprised to see him win a major and shocked to see him catch Nicklaus.
Posted from Rivals Mobile

 

[novabball2]

it really is amazing how his major victories came to a halt after the 08 US Open. injuries didnt help but he is winning the big non major tournies. how come he cant win or even compete at the majors (less the masters) at this point in his career?

 

[novabball2]

since YE Yang came from behind to beat him in the 09 PGA he has 6 (4 T4, 1 T3, one T6) top 6s in 15 events. actually better than I thought but other than his masters where he incurred the penalty he wasnt a threat to win. that was a bad break , he was probably gonna win that year if the ball didnt skip into the water.

 

[TwoDecks]

Tiger has never been very good coming from behind to win. I think people have caught up to him, and he never had the ability to make a run when he is down 1-2 strokes int he final round of a major. The days of him being up 3-5 strokes after the 3rd round are over.

I hope I am wrong, as when Tiger is doing well - golf benefits from it. Whether you like him or hate him, you can't dispute that a Tiger in contention gets people to tune in

 

[Shammer]

Tiger is the only reason I tune in to watch golf. When he's not playing I have no interest in watching.

I love to play golf. Play at least 80 rounds per year.

 

[BAC111]

Watching Tiger this morning and call me stupid but I never saw the beers being chucked onto the tee after he leaves the tee box area. Check out the end of the video. Hilarious.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EduujxPmRJA

 

[spg109876ers]

Originally posted by novabball2:

...he was probably gonna win that year if the ball didnt skip into the water.

I actually agree with you, but I'm not sure why, as that took place in the 2nd round.

I would be surprised if Woods doesn't win more majors, but there's a lot working against him;

- 39 is old in sports. The front of the herd (fittest of the regular people) is aging better - plenty of fit regular people over 50 - but that doesn't translate to sports. There's no fountain of youth for the pros.

- reading Vijay in 2004.

- Woods is a little different, since he'll be one of the fittest 40-year-olds, but the field is really in shape, too (caught a little Humana, saw Justin Thomas bust a 2-iron, these young guys that hit it a mile are everywhere)

- Mike Tyson of golf

What could put him over the top;

- Stop trying to get better - no more "swing changes" after this, no more "marrying two chipping methods". Guy will write a book in 20 years that will say if he didn't keep screwing around after 2000, unnecessary swing change etc, and just competed, he would have "probably" won more. Get something workable and just play.

- Dial down the driver. Can't keep up with the kidz, at least not without breaking down, so what's the point. Play from the fairway.

- just win 5 British Opens

e2e

This post was edited on 1/28 7:36 AM by spg109876ers

 

[BAC111]

Tiger and Speith are paired today for first round. Last season Woods and Speith played 5 competitive rounds where Speith was 20 (twenty) shots better than Woods.

 

[Ninetynine5.0]

Originally posted by BAC111:

Tiger and Speith are paired today for first round. Last season Woods and Speith played 5 competitive rounds where Speith was 20 (twenty) shots better than Woods.

Mentioned here before but keep thinking about what Jack Nicklaus said about Tiger as he was racking up the majors, something like "the only thing that can slow him down is a family"

Boy was he ever right - not for for the reasons Jack had in mind, but he nailed it.

Still think Tiger has another run in him. Although you have to wonder as you see him following Lindey Vonn around Europe. Not sure how focused he is on that run.

 

[JMerc2]

He will never win another major. And might not ever win another tournament. He'll have some bad rounds, fake another injury, then take a year off to rehab. Rinse and repeat, then he will finally call it quits.
Posted from Rivals Mobile

 

[spg109876ers]

Originally posted by JMerc2:

He will never win another major. And might not ever win another tournament.

Interesting prediction for 2013 POY.

Goosen playing well after back surgery. Said he's tip-top and wished he'd had the procedure years ago. It's not too hard to put these guys back together. Even with an age-appropriate swing, Woodsy will have plenty of pop.

How many majors does Spieth win? Guy is 21 and doesn't even carry a 3I.

 

[BAC111]

A lot depends on the health. If he's healthy he might be able to win 1-2 majors. Look at Nicklaus. Won most of his majors in late 60's, early 70's. Did win two in 80 but only other major win was 6 years later.

 

[novabball2]

spg - wasnt that the 3rd rd where the ball skipped in the water?

 

[novabball2]

2nd rd, you are right.

http://espn.go.com/golf/masters13/story/_/id/9167230/2013-masters-tiger-penalized-2-strokes-ball-drop-15

 

[spg109876ers]

Oh, one other thing Woods has going for him…there still aren't a lot of winners out there.

Obviously, after a huge 2014, McIlroy looms large. Beyond that there are only two validated champs that aren't age-neutered, Watson (36 by the way) and Kaymer.

For the record, I'll reiterate…I don't get Spieth a little bit (I hope he wins majors, then I'll "get" it).

- won two junior amateurs - who cares? If they were "real" US Amateur Titles, I'd take notice.

- T89 in 2014 Driving - there are dozens of guys who can hit shots Spieth can't even try. And driving is just a proxy for "getting after it". Remember how Rose closed at Merion.

As I said, during Humana telecast, Justin Thomas (who?) stripes a 2I, and you could hear the announcers wake up.

The book on Spieth is…He doesn't do anything gr8, he just scores well (2014 putting 20th = Birdies 6th, pretty good). That's actually bad going forward. You can learn how to score, at some point, you can't learn how to hit a 2I (maybe juice?).

(trying to gdog Spieth to a big W).

 

[novabball2]

i love watching Bubba and Dustin Johnson play. both hit it crazy long. Johnson looks disinterested at times, i guess he has other interests.

guys like Kuchar, Snedeker, Day are really good I just dont think they have what it takes to win a major.

would love to see Phil win the US Open, tiger win another masters.

could care less about Speith. he bores me.

 

[HereComeTheCats]

Originally posted by BAC111:

Watching Tiger this morning and call me stupid but I never saw the beers being chucked onto the tee after he leaves the tee box area. Check out the end of the video. Hilarious.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EduujxPmRJA

"Guy can hit a 1 inch ball into a 3 inch hole from 150 yards but can't hit another man's hand with his hand from 1 foot away.

 

[BAC111]

I would be disinterested as well.

[/URL]

 

[nardibynature123]

Tiger is +4 through 4.

He is BACK

 

[HereComeTheCats]

I take back everything I said, he's the same old Tiger.

Spraying tee shots
Leaving chips well short
Slamming clubs

He's on 16 now.

 

[novabball2]

he cant drive the ball, if you cant drive it in the fairway you are not going to post low scores. not sure why he doesnt go back to a 3 wood and iron off the tee. he is not the same old tiger and he is showing signs of being almost a non threat to win a major. and i hate when the announcers make excuses calling it rust. rust is not being sharp, hitting the ball in peoples backyards is not rust. its a bad swing.

 

[novabball2]

tiger - 6 over through 6 went bogey , par par double triple par. when is the WD coming ? citing back stiffness. 12th hole over under?

 

[adp98]

He finally got it going in the 2nd half of the back 9, hitting a few great drives. His short game was god awful. My hope is he makes it back to contending again. Obviously the old Tiger left us in 08. However, golf is more interesting to me when Tiger is near the top of the leaderboard. I hope he gets back soon.

 

[novabball2]

everyone has been saying that for years now. yes we all know its better when he is at the top. But he isnt close to any of his major form from the past. 08 destroyed his knee and overall game. sure he'll win the memorial and other tourneys but who cares? if he isnt winning majors then its not exciting. tiger winning the players does nothing for me. the masters , thats a whole different thing.


Butch waiting for his phone to ring?

 

[adp98]

Yesterday he looked healthy. His body seemed to be fine. It was his game. Agree on the need to call Butch. I'd love to see it happen but not holding my breath. Seems way too stubborn.

 

[novabball2]

+10 through 13 today.

why is tiger so unlikable? i actually find myself rooting against him for fun yet when he is playing i love watching.

 

[HereComeTheCats]

Give me a few weeks to scrape the rust off and I'm pretty sure I could beat Tiger.

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. (AP) - Tiger Woods matched his worst 9-hole score on the PGA Tour with a 44 on the back nine Friday at the Phoenix Open.

With the front nine still to play, Woods was 10 over for the tournament and tied for last with Arizona club pro Michael Hopper.

Woods also shot 44 on the back nine at the Memorial two years ago.

Woods took a double bogey on the 14th with a tee shot into a desert bush and a bad chip. He made triple bogey on the par-5 15th with a tee shot into the water, a bunker shot over the green and a flubbed chip.y sur

 

[adp98]

One my partners is a +1/scratch golfer and I asked if he left our office at noon today would he break 40 on that course. This guy never boasts about his game and without hesitation he said absolutely yes. Tiger looks like a guy with the yips around the green and with a wedge in his hand. His driver....well.....he showed flashes yesterday late but obviously that was a mirage.

 

[cleanwave]

Guys wife beat him up for doglegs sake.

 

[Ninetynine5.0]

And is anyone buying that 'i got hit by the camera' missing tooth story?

 

[adp98]

Having this debate with my buddies. Golf Channel just says, "Tiger is probably off to South Florida to work on his game". No way. Air Tiger has already landed in Vegas and he's going to gamble, drink and bang some chicks. Has to be right?

 

[cleanwave]

He may be cutting himself. who the F knows

I doubt someone that competitive easily shrugs off such a horrible performance

 

[cleanwave]

 

[cleanwave]

50-1 to win next week.

No brainier for loyal fans to bet on him?

 

[HereComeTheCats]

He's always played well at Torrey Pines but a win doesn't seem likely. Too much to turn around from last week. It it was just his driver, or wedges I'd give him a chance but not when he's suffering with all aspects of the game.

 

[LizReed]

I didn't see that an amateur tied for 5th at Phoenix. Impressive.