Tiger: Full Swing Release Pattern Causing Short Game Woes

Tiger Woods did not finish last in the Hero World Challenge (okay, T-17 is tied for last) but he did have his best finish of the year and his second most world rankings points! And just 26 shots worse than winner Jordan Spieth. Can you say, mitzvah!

Doug Ferguson reports.

While Tiger's back is fully recovered and he is optimistic about the future, it's hard to ignore his short game horrors around the Isleworth greens. Two more beauties marred the card Sunday, bringing the total at least nine borderline mind-boggling shots for one of the games greatest short game wizards...ever, according to Steve DiMeglio in USA Today.

Nine!

Before we dwell on the sheer weirdness of those shots, Ryan Lavner on the long game positives but this from playing partner Steve Stricker on the short game.

Said Stricker: “He’s fighting some of those things in his chipping technique that he’s trying to do in his big swing. He’ll be fine. He gets frustrated with it, but he’ll be fine. It looks like he’s swinging at it a lot more aggressively.”

Bob Harig of ESPN.com wrapped up the week and declared it a win-win because Tiger's back is sound. Certainly hard to disagree, but I feel like I've entered the Twilight Zone reading this rationale from Woods related to short game issues prevalent other times this year (Torrey Pines was the worst, Valhalla wasn't pretty either and neither of those had Isleworth's pesky "grain" used by some to explain the awful shots).

Woods:

"If I put my backswing in the same position that I used to have it in and then make this new release, I'm going to hit it fat every time,'' he said. "I've got to get things in a different order. From about 40 yards out it's pretty solid. I hit those shots really well. Anything inside of that, I have to get used to.

"It's a different release pattern, and so my chipping is off, putting is just a touch off,'' he said. "I started to figure something out today, which was nice. I've got to get used to a different release pattern, different release point. That said, my short game is off because of it, but my long game is better. All it is is practice. I just need to work.''

Maybe I'm just old school, but if your backswing thoughts are precisely the same for a little flip wedge around a green as for a full driver swing, you're playing a game with which I and many others are not familiar.

The good news. He plans to spend the next week ironing out the kinks, according to Golfweek's Adam Schupak. Hopefully around a chipping green.

Woods said he would be reviewing his performance with his new swing consultant, Chris Como, and planned to practice for the next week to reinforce the work they have done together before taking a break for the holiday season. As for his forthcoming schedule for the start of the New Year, Woods played coy.