Does Golf Still Want Tiger Woods Back?

by Dave Barwise

Photo: USA Today

The wind-up looks good. Controlled at least. With authority he halts his Taylormade M2 a couple of inches past parallel, while we wait with bated breath to see if his body will survive the imminent punishment we know is on the way. On cue, his leading leg drives down, unwinding his hips and throwing everything he’s got onto his left knee. With a clunk, the driver snaps through the back of the ball which whirs off across the wilderness.

In fairness I’m only watching over Brian Wacker’s Instagram (brianwacker1), but Tiger Woods’ swing is looking pretty darn great right now. There’s no jerkiness, hesitancy and *most crucially* no grimace. We have room to be sceptical, but it’s looking more and more likely that his 16-month absence from professional golf will come to an end this week.

But – and this is something that has been echoing around a lot since he announced his return in September – who cares? Sure, the man was an icon for two decades and tore through records like wet paper, but hasn’t the world of golf moved on? A major win certainly looks unlikely. A quick Google search of the odds tells us what we already know, that the road to improbable victory is blocked by a cavalcade of finely-tuned athletes.

Ultimately, Woods’ revolution of the early noughties has come back to haunt him. Pre-Tiger, it wasn’t all that much of a surprise to see out-of-sorts out-of-shape-rs lifting a trophy with one hand while the other was occupied with a cigar. The young and then-scrawny Californian was one of the first to realise that athleticism was the key to reaping the benefits of modern golfing technology, and so he set about adding meat to the bone. The result? 14 major championships and millions of inspired youngsters.

Those kids are now all grown up, grown out and are playing on tour. They have everything Tiger had.

Expect that they don’t.

For me and for many, the greatest fascination with Tiger is that he not just a sportsman. The man is part athlete and part artist. I know that sounds ridiculous and even cliché.  But when you think of the Federers, Jordans and Schumachers of this world, you have to consider divinity separates them from every athlete that hits, runs and reacts as fast as they do. In his book, The Big Miss, Woods’ former coach, Hank Haney, gives a fascinating insight into the first time the two met.

“The things that make a difference... are intangibles: toughness, work ethic, self-confidence, desire, a sense of how to score, and most of all, true passion for the game.

“On meeting Tiger, though, I know in an instant... that he possesses the right intangibles to the highest degree.”

The bench-press made him strong. But it was something completely special and outside of replication that made him great. And it was Tiger’s greatness that saw his ball tumble back to drop into the hole at the ’05 Masters, that inspired his ‘08 US Open win on a broken leg.

But is he still relevant? And does golf want him back? Considering that he easily has more Twitter followers than every Masters champion combined since his last win over a decade ago, I’d certainly say so. And that’s before we consider that it’s a not-very-active account of someone whose greatest achievements came before Twitter’s widespread popularity.

Just about every golf critic (whether in commentary box or armchair) will tell you; one more injury will permanently send Tiger out of the game. Every time he swings the club, his risks his career. But the lovers of the game aren’t looking for great feats of strength. They’re watching for pure unadulterated brilliance – the likes of which will be all the rarer when he’s gone.