Is Tiger still the best golfer in the world?

[CowboyDan]

Forget about rankings, is he still the most talented player in the game today? Can he get his game back to where it was and beyond?

I believe he can still find it. Golf is so mental, and his head has been in a different place the last few years, and yet he's still had above average years for any golfer. I think he's mentally the strongest player on the tour and it's just a matter of time before it all comes together again. That being said, it's about time that the next crop of new, young stars make their mark on the sport. What do you think?

 

[Chocolate Lab]

He's definitely not the best golfer in the world right now.

I'm sure he'll win here and there, probably even including a couple of majors, when his putter gets hot. But his dominating days are over. His former huge advantages of intimidation and great putting are gone.

 

[Hostile]

When Tiger is on, no one can beat him.

When other golfers are on, only Tiger can beat them.

That is why he is still the best in the world IMO. He needs to get his head back in the game and I think he will.

 

[CowboyDan]

When Tiger is on, no one can beat him.

When other golfers are on, only Tiger can beat them.

That is why he is still the best in the world IMO. He needs to get his head back in the game and I think he will.

I agree with this. He's the only golfer I've ever seen that can move up a leaderboard as he's struggling and hacking it around the course. Most golfers have to play their best to stay in contention. If he's playing his best, he's 7 strokes ahead.

 

[Stautner]

Forget about rankings, is he still the most talented player in the game today? Can he get his game back to where it was and beyond?

I believe he can still find it. Golf is so mental, and his head has been in a different place the last few years, and yet he's still had above average years for any golfer. I think he's mentally the strongest player on the tour and it's just a matter of time before it all comes together again. That being said, it's about time that the next crop of new, young stars make their mark on the sport. What do you think?

The text of your post and teh tiel to your thread are different things.

Answering the title question, no, he is not the best golfer in the world.

Responding to your text, yes, he probably can come back and be the best again. He has just been too good in his career to believe otherwise.

 

[CowboyDan]

The text of your post and teh tiel to your thread are different things.

Answering the title question, no, he is not the best golfer in the world.

Responding to your text, yes, he probably can come back and be the best again. He has just been too good in his career to believe otherwise.

Good point. I guess I should've massaged the title a bit.

 

[BrAinPaiNt]

How many titles has the best golfer in the world won since the situation happened?

He was the best golfer in the world, he could be again, right now it is a resounding no until he gets back to the level he was before.

JMO.

 

[Chocolate Lab]

How many titles has the best golfer in the world won since the situation happened?

He was the best golfer in the world, he could be again, right now it is a resounding no until he gets back to the level he was before.

JMO.

Yep.

It's kind of moot to say what his best is when no one has even seen his best in years now. I think his best is gone, or at least in deep hibernation.

He's also changing his swing (again), so he can hit some really good shots but then some absolutely awful ones. He's also not chipping or putting very well.

But the thing is, I don't think it's true that his best is the best anymore. Any of these guys are awesome when they're on, but Tiger used to have a huge length advantage over pretty much everyone. That is long gone. It's weird that even guys older than him he used to hit it by, like Mickelson, are now longer than him -- in some cases, much longer.

 

[Stautner]

I'm more curious to know if he is still the best sugar daddy for porn actresses in the world. That seems like a much more interesting story.

 

[Yakuza Rich]

He's not right now. I've got a friend working with Sean Foley and him on the swing.

The problem is that Tiger's swing was getting worse and worse during the Haney era and wasn't getting any better. I think he was bound to 'fall apart.' I think the cheating scandal probably helped speed things up a bit, but it was bound to happen and I think it was more coincidence than anything. I think Haney and his agent saw this and the scandal and decided the smart thing to do was to ditch him (almost Costanza-esque). In an interview with Fox (IIRC) after Haney left him, he basically talked about being concerned with his 'brand' rather than helping Tiger.

Anyway, he supposedly changed his grip which was a major problem for him. I think he starts to show something at the Masters, probably shoots a 68 on Saturday, but follows up with a disappointing Sunday.

I think he can get back to being #1. He still generates top 10 clubhead speed. It wasn't too long ago that he was one of the best long iron players on Tour. Same with the putter and the short game. He just needs to get it so he can consistently find the fairway while ripping the driver.






YR

 

[Phoenix]

Good grief. No no no. Tiger has lost it. Like Federer and Nadal, Tiger is yesterdays news.

 

[CowboyDan]

But the thing is, I don't think it's true that his best is the best anymore. Any of these guys are awesome when they're on, but Tiger used to have a huge length advantage over pretty much everyone. That is long gone. It's weird that even guys older than him he used to hit it by, like Mickelson, are now longer than him -- in some cases, much longer.

I think I can make a reasonable case for disagreement here. Let's take a look at Tiger's scores at The Masters that he's won vs the last 10 winners not named Tiger. I like this comparison because it's the same course every year, unlike every other Major.

Tiger's: 270, 272, 276, 276

2010 Mickelson 272
2009 Cabrera 276 (3 way tie after 4 rounds)
2008 Immelman 280
2007 Johnson 289
2006 Mickelson 281
2004 Mickelson 279
2003 Weir 281 (2 way tie)
2000 Singh 278
1999 Olazabel 280
1998 O'Meara 279

Only 1 person has touched Tiger's second best Master's score of 272....Mickelson, a 3 time Master's winner. This tells me that the only person who's really caught Tiger is Phil. The rest are just benefitting from a struggling Woods.


Here's a look at the last 11 British Opens:

2010 Oosthuizen272
2009 Stewart Cink278
2008 Harrington 283
2007 Harrington277
2006Tiger Woods 270
2005Tiger Woods 274
2004 Hamilton274
2003 Curtis283
2002 Els278
2001 Duval274
2000Woods 269

It's just rare that anyone shoots as low as Tiger does when he's on his game. Their best is rarely as good as his best.

 

[WV Cowboy]

What is the actual question?

Is Tiger still the best golfer in the world?


If you are asking is Tiger still the best golfer in the world, .. today?

The answer is obvious, .. no.

 

[YosemiteSam]

Romo is a better golfer right now.

 

[Chocolate Lab]

I think I can make a reasonable case for disagreement here. Let's take a look at Tiger's scores at The Masters that he's won vs the last 10 winners not named Tiger. I like this comparison because it's the same course every year, unlike every other Major.

Tiger's: 270, 272, 276, 276

2010 Mickelson 272
2009 Cabrera 276 (3 way tie after 4 rounds)
2008 Immelman 280
2007 Johnson 289
2006 Mickelson 281
2004 Mickelson 279
2003 Weir 281 (2 way tie)
2000 Singh 278
1999 Olazabel 280
1998 O'Meara 279

Only 1 person has touched Tiger's second best Master's score of 272....Mickelson, a 3 time Master's winner. This tells me that the only person who's really caught Tiger is Phil. The rest are just benefitting from a struggling Woods.


Here's a look at the last 11 British Opens:

2010 Oosthuizen272
2009 Stewart Cink278
2008 Harrington 283
2007 Harrington277
2006Tiger Woods 270
2005Tiger Woods 274
2004 Hamilton274
2003 Curtis283
2002 Els278
2001 Duval274
2000Woods 269

It's just rare that anyone shoots as low as Tiger does when he's on his game. Their best is rarely as good as his best.

But that's like saying no one is as good as Joe Montana at his best. The problem is, Montana's best is in the past.

Sure, once upon a time all these things were true -- if he played his best, he won. The question is whether he can still do that. Maybe he can sometime in the future, but he can't handle one or two year periods of a swing change at age 35 like he could when he was 25 and had still had years of his physical prime ahead of him.

And BTW, I'm sure you know the Masters isn't really the same every year. It's at the same course, obviously, but they make changes every year. Especially years ago when they "Tiger-proofed" after he was hitting wedges into par 5s.

 

[JohnnyHopkins]

Tiger is too busy battling his "addiction" to focus on Golf.

 

[trickblue]

He's the most talented... but he's no longer the best...

If he gets his mojo back he will be...

 

[CowboyDan]

But that's like saying no one is as good as Joe Montana at his best. The problem is, Montana's best is in the past.

Sure, once upon a time all these things were true -- if he played his best, he won. The question is whether he can still do that. Maybe he can sometime in the future, but he can't handle one or two year periods of a swing change at age 35 like he could when he was 25 and had still had years of his physical prime ahead of him.

And BTW, I'm sure you know the Masters isn't really the same every year. It's at the same course, obviously, but they make changes every year. Especially years ago when they "Tiger-proofed" after he was hitting wedges into par 5s.

If he was 40+ I'd agree, because I think Jack only won 1 major over 40 and Fred Couples came close to winning the Masters last year. But Tiger's only 35. He is in amazing shape compared to most players on the tour now, let alone guys like Jack and Freddy. So physically, he is capable of doing what he used to do. He was injured in 2008. 2009 was a comeback year, and though he had 6 wins, none were majors, and he wasn't quite right. 2010 was a lost year for him mentally and emotionally. I'm not sure he'll show it at the Masters, but I do think he'll get back to form this season. His off the course stuff is more settled now. I think last year he really worked on repairing his image. I'm hoping he goes back to mean, nasty, competitive, superior, aloof Tiger......its better for his game.

Back to fitness and age for a minute...Phil turns 41 this year and is not near the physical specimen that Tiger is. Golf is mental. He needs to get his mind right again.

 

[Hostile]

Here's another way of asking it.

If you asked today's PGA golfers to name the best in the world and they cannot name themselves, who is it?

I guarantee you that Tiger would be the guy named most often.

 

[silverbear]

Forget about rankings, is he still the most talented player in the game today? Can he get his game back to where it was and beyond?

I believe he can still find it. Golf is so mental, and his head has been in a different place the last few years, and yet he's still had above average years for any golfer. I think he's mentally the strongest player on the tour and it's just a matter of time before it all comes together again. That being said, it's about time that the next crop of new, young stars make their mark on the sport. What do you think?

I don't believe that Tiger will ever again be the dominant force in golf, the way he once was... I suspect he'll win some here and there, but it would surprise me if he ever got back to being number one in the world...

The truth is, IMO Tiger doesn't have a real good, fundamentally sound swing... part of the reason for that is the violent rip he takes at the ball off the tee, but no matter what the reason, his swing will always be high maintenance, it will always require a lot of practice time to keep it fine-tuned...