Too Much Tiger?

April 11, 2009May 23, 2010Danny Vinik 3 Comments

tiger-masters

The 3rd roundof the Masters concluded today with Tiger Mania continuing throughout the day. Woods entered the round tied for 19th at just two under par and yet the entire golf world stayed focused on him. Isn’t that too much focus on Tiger?

Everyone keeps wondering whether Tiger can come back from 4… 5… 6… now 7 strokes down. Yes, he did it two weeks ago, but that wasn’t the Masters and that wasn’t against the same competition as the Masters. No offense to Sean O’Hair, but I would not expect Angel Cabrera, Kenny Perry, or Jim Furyk to give up such a large lead.

Speaking of Sean O’Hair. Did you know that O’Hairis tied with Tiger at -4 after the 3rd round? He is one of eight other players tied with Tiger. You probably knew that Phil Mickelson was at 4 under as well. but I’m guessing you couldn’t name any of those 7 other guys. That’s because CBS, ESPN, and the rest of the sports world don’t care about the players tied for 10th place.

Unless one of those players is Tiger.

The man may be the greatest golfer of all time, but until he reaches within 3 of the leader, let’s talk about the leader instead of Woods. Avid golf fans care about the sport, not just Tiger. Let’s talk about the improbable run of 48-year-old Kenny Perry, who is trying to become the oldest major champion ever. Or Angel Cabrera’s attempt to prove that he is not a one-hit-wonder? How about the fact that two South Africans are in the Top 10 (Rory Sabbatini and Tim Clark)? Or Anthony Kim being tied for 10th in just his 1st Master Continue reading “Too Much Tiger?” →

He Does It Again

March 30, 2009May 23, 2010Danny Vinik 1 Comment

Was there any chance that Tiger was going to miss that 16-foot birdie putt? Everyone knew it was coming. It was just a matter of how dark it would be when Tiger would sink the putt to win the Arnold Palmer Invitational on the 72ndhole. Starting the day 5 strokes behind Sean O’hair, Tiger fought back quickly to get within stroke by the 8th hole, but O’Hairfought back, birdieing number nine andreaching the turn with a two stroke lead. A combination of O’Hair bogeying 10 and Tiger birdiein tiger-comeback g 13 left the two tied after the 15th hole. Even more, Tiger took the lead on 16 when O’Hairbogeyed. The lead was short-lived though as a poor tee shot left Tiger with a bogey on the par-3 17th. The two entered the 72nd hole tied. Who did you expect would win?

Woods and O’Hair both reached the green in regulation, leaving themselves pretty lengthy puts though. First up, O’Hair hits his putt short and to the left, leaving the ball about 4 feet away from the hole. You could hear murmurs rise in the crowd as everyone knew that Tiger had a shot to win it. He spoke with his caddie, aligned the ball, and measured the precise line of the putt. Finally, as anticipation reached its peak, Tiger stepped up to his ball. A clean stroke and the ball made its way towards the hole. Just as it was about a yard away from the hole, Tiger takes a skip step backward before pumping his fist in the air as the ball smoothly sank into the cup. Tiger had done it again. Continue reading “He Does It Again” →

Padraig Wins the 2008 British Open

July 20, 2008May 23, 2010Danny Vinik 1 Comment

Padraig Harrington won the 2008 British Open Championship on Sunday with a final round 69 (-1) to finish the tournament at +5, four shots ahead of runner-up Ian Poulter. The week began with Harrington unsure if he’d even be able to play and defend his 2007 Open victory, but it ended with Padraig holding the trophy high for the second consecutive year. Entering the 17th hole with a two-shot lead of Poulter, Harrington hit a perfect five wood which left him a ten-foot putt for eagle. After Padraig knocked that putt in to give himself a four shot lead, he parred 18 and pumped is fist high in the air. Lost in Padraig’s victory though is 53-year-old Greg Norman, who gave us quite a ride during the entire tournament.

Norman finished the 137th British Open tied for third at nine over par. He started the day with a two shot lead on the rest of the field, but a final round 77 cost him a shot at becoming the oldest major champion in PGA history. Yet, Norman has nothing to be ashamed of. His performance was nothing less than magical, and though this story did not have a fairy-tale ending, it was still a great ride. His putting during today’s final round was mediocre at the best. The horrible weather conditions at Royal Birkdale caused putting to be a nightmare for all of the golfers and Norman struggled mightily. Continue reading “Padraig Wins the 2008 British Open” →