Ames-Tiger History

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Lorne Rubenstein had this little backstory in his column previewing yesterday's Tiger bloodgeoning of Stephen Ames:

There's also some history between Ames and Woods. Ames was quoted in the Calgary Herald during the 2000 Masters as saying that Woods thinks he's bigger than the game, doesn't get along well with his fellow players, and doesn't act right on the course. He called Woods "a spoiled 24-year-old."

Ames wasn't playing that Masters, but his comments generated a stir. He said he was misquoted, while the writer maintained that he quoted him accurately.

9&8

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The best thing about K.J. Choi not speaking any English? He can't piss off irritate Tiger.

Doug Ferguson reports on Tiger's 9&8 smothering of Stephen Ames, who made an unwise comment about his chances in light of Tiger's erratic ball striking. Tiger was asked about it after the round:

Q. Were you aware of Stephen's comments yesterday that you weren't striking

TIGER WOODS: Yes.

Q. I assumed you were.

TIGER WOODS: Yes.

Q. What was your reaction when you saw that?

TIGER WOODS: 9 & 8.

Q. Obviously you like challenges, the idea of someone saying you're not driving the ball well. It must have lit a fire under you.

TIGER WOODS: You might say that.

Q. It would be better if you said it.

TIGER WOODS: As I said, 9 & 8.

Later one of the scribblers revealed that he is attempting to become the last golf writer on the planet to write about Tiger entering his 30s.

Q. Even after today, Tiger, you're off to a good start. Do you think you can be as dominant through your 30s as you were through your 20s?

TIGER WOODS: That's ultimately what you want to happen. But you have to work. I've done a lot of things to put that together, but it's very exciting.

More Tiger Talk

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More from Tiger's Masters media day:

Q. I wanted to ask you about moving to new technology, getting more distance, is that a reflection of what was happening on Tour the last couple of years versus what you could see was going to happen with guys like J.B. Holmes and Bubba Watson coming up?

TIGER WOODS: Well, the guys -- I know I didn't use technology, the advances in technology for a couple of years. Guys were sacrificing some of the spins that they would normally have for distance, and they have gone longer and lighter in shafts, bigger, hotter heads and obviously higher launching and less-spinning golf balls. All of that equates to a lot more yardage. What I've always told the guys at Nike is that I've always wanted a golf ball that would spin around the greens. So can I actually hit the ball further? Yeah, there's no doubt about that, if I went to the golf balls that other guys are using. I decided to use technology in the driver only and not necessarily the golf ball. I've got more of an overall-performing golf ball than some of the other guys because my ball does spin a little bit more, but I am able to hit it further than the old golf balls I used to play.

Tiger In Dubai

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This has to be scary for anyone dreaming of winning the Masters this year:

TIGER WOODS: I just have to my list of things I needed to work on is a lot shorter than it was last year at the same time. And I just felt like I didn't have this ability at this time last year to turn things around, because I had so many things to try and work onto get things to where I could do that, and my understanding of my new swing.

But after another year of experience with it, I had that ability now to turn things around because I have an understanding of ball flight and my swing and the mechanics that [instructor] Hank [Haney] has been trying to teach me.

And I'm not sure if this qualifies as a rally killer, a point misser, or a point missing rally killer?

Q. Did it ever cross your mind as you were going back on the 18th tee that you don't like that hole and Ernie Els has a fantastic record on that hole?

TIGER WOODS: No. I thought the hole was playing pretty easy for me today because it was into the wind. If I hit the ball on the line like I did earlier in the week, I can't get to the hazard. So it eliminates an obstacle for me. So even if I hit a straight ball, I'm still fine. I'm still going to be in the fairway. And so I don't have to turn it that much and the wind is coming off the right a little bit, just hit a straight ball at the indicate, kind of bring it over, and I can't run into the hazard. So for me, I thought it was playing easier being into the wind than it was downwind.

Q. Going back to memories, what is your fondest memory at Stanford?

TIGER WOODS: At Stanford? [Here Tiger's thinking huh!? But you'd never guess it...] There's so many, there really are...

Tiger: Who's a shotmaker? Who maneuvers the ball?

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I should have read more "Tiger at 30" stories. Well, at least in the case of Jaime Diaz's Golf Digest look. I should have known Jaime would offer a fresh and newsworthy take. And it helped to have access to an unusually chatty Tiger.

As he often does so well, Jaime lets his subject do the talking:

"I enjoy moving the ball and hitting different shots, and I think that's the way golf should be played," he says. "But the game has changed since I've been on tour. It's hard to make the ball move. You look at the old guys who are or were true shotmakers, like when I played with Lee Trevino at Bighorn and he blew my mind with some of the shots he hit. Then you look on tour and you ask, 'Who's a true shotmaker? Who actually maneuvers the ball or does something different with it?' And there really aren't that many, if any, out here anymore."

"I'd like to see more spin added to the golf ball, so misses would be more pronounced and good shots more rewarded," he said. "Anytime you bring maneuverability back into the game of golf, it's going to favor the better players who understand how to control the golf ball. It still matters in firm conditions or in wind. I always like to shape something in there a little bit just because I'm giving myself a fatter area for playing a miss, because it's not a game of perfect. I'd eliminate the 60-degree wedge and set a 56-degree limit. For one, it would bring more feel back into the game. Because now guys lay up to exact yardages and hit nothing but full shots. Nobody hits half shots anymore. And it would make the short game around the green a lot harder. If guys didn't have a 60-degree or even a 64-degree wedge to save them, you wouldn't see them being as aggressive going into the greens, because they couldn't short-side themselves as much.

"It's all about keeping the skill factor. At the moment, equipment has brought everyone closer together. It's harder to separate from the field, without a doubt. It's a challenge." 

Tiger and his technophobic agenda. A thing of beauty!  

Tiger 2000 v. 2005

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George White compares 2000 Tiger to last year's edition.

OK, let’s go to a stat which is fairly meaningless when you are bombing drives out there that distance. Let’s compare driving accuracy. He hit 71.2 percent of his fairways in 2000. And last year he hit – just 54.6? His ranking last year was 188th, while in 2000 he was 54th.

OK, fair enough, but the fairways-hit figure is fairly inconsequential when one is hitting wedges and 9-irons into virtually every par-4 green. So let’s compare greens hit. In 2005 he hit 70 percent, good for sixth on tour. And in 2000 he hit – a little better than 75 percent, which was first on tour.

This has probably been covered before on this web site, or maybe it was just something I obsessed over in a book proposal that was met by some of the most hilarious rejection excuses of all time. Anyway, his fairway hit percentage drops nearly 17% in 2005 and his green in regulation number only drops 5%.

Flogging man, it works!

White also writes:

Now, let me tell you what is wrong with all this analysis: golf courses have gotten longer and tighter than in 2000; and equipment has changed dramatically. Not to mention that the men who are playing this year – heck, the men who were playing LAST year – are much different from 2000. Are they a better group than 2000? Undoubtedly they are. Golf in 2006 is not the same game as Golf 2000. 

At the pace we're on, imagine how much different golf in 2012 will be than golf 2006?

Tiger Press Conference at Torrey Pines

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The assembled inkslingers got plenty of time with Tiger Woods before the Buick, yielding a few interesting comments in spite of the questions.

Q. (Inaudible).

TIGER WOODS: You never know. I haven't started designing yet. No one has presented me any opportunities yet as far as that, but maybe one day."

tx_tigerbuick.jpgI'm guessing he was asked about designing a course? If so, it's hard to believe no one has presented an opportunity.

Q. What are your latest thoughts about the lengthening of Augusta almost in the context of what you just said? And do you think it's going to be a better test of skill that's going to require a better player to win now?

TIGER WOODS: The only way I think it would be a better test is if it remained dry because then every player can hit a good drive and have a reasonable iron to the green.

But if it's soaked I hit driver and a 3-iron to 11 one year when it was wet, and all the guys that were in front of me and in my group and behind me were all hitting lumber in there. That hole is not meant to hit 3-wood or 5-wood or something into that green.

Same thing with No. 7. That hole was not designed for a 5-iron. If it was, it was not at that green speed.

If the fairways are firm and they're running, then I can see it being a great test. But if they're soft, then I think it eliminates a lot of guys that have the skill to play but they just don't hit the ball far enough.

Q. (Inaudible).

TIGER WOODS: I think you need to move it around, depending on the conditions. If it's soft, why play a 500 plus par 4 all the way back when it's soft? Give the guys a chance a little bit. But now give the guys a chance a little bit and make it 480 (laughing). I think the staff needs to understand moving around. The prerequisite now is almost you have to hit the ball long. Length has always been an advantage in this sport, always has been and always will be. You just need to make it fair for all the rest of the competitors, as well.    

Elin's Christmas Gift...

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Thanks to reader John for this WSJ story on Tiger's new home purchase. Jupiter Island here they come.

If his latest real-estate deal goes through, Tiger Woods won't have to look far for a golfing buddy. The game's all-time money winner, 29 years old, has agreed to buy a Florida house on Jupiter Island, in the same gated community as fellow golfers Greg Norman and Jesper Parnevik, people with knowledge of the deal say.

Mr. Woods has a special history with Mr. Parnevik -- the Swedish-born star introduced the American golfer to model Elin Nordegren, whom Mr. Woods married in 2004. (Ms. Nordegren had worked as a nanny for Mr. Parnevik.) A purchase price for the house couldn't be determined, but it's listed for $18 million. Mark Steinberg, an agent for Mr. Woods at International Management Group, declined to comment. The 16,000-square-foot house has six bedrooms, and the 10-acre property includes a beach cottage and guest house and tennis and basketball courts. Jupiter Island, about 25 miles north of Palm Beach, has about 600 residents and has long attracted families from the Doubledays to the Fords and duPonts.

Mr. Woods made an earlier real-estate deal this year. In February, the three-time Masters champion bought land at a golf-club development under construction in Jackson, Wyo. The size and price couldn't be determined, but people familiar with that deal said Mr. Woods bought an "estate home" site. Such properties run from 2.5 to five acres and cost from $1.2 million to $4.5 million, according to a sales director at the development. Mr. Woods also owns a home at a private golf community in Windermere, Fla., near Orlando.

Stephen Garofalo, founder and former chief executive of fiber-optics company Metromedia Fiber Networks, agreed to sell the Jupiter property to Mr. Woods. Mr. Garofalo, who didn't return calls seeking comment, paid $12.3 million for the property in 2003, public records show. Metromedia, a onetime telecommunications highflier, filed for bankruptcy-court protection from creditors in 2002, emerged from proceedings in 2003 and took the name AboveNet.

 

Tiger Money

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From Doug Ferguson's notes column:

 STAT OF THE WEEK: Tiger Woods would have finished at No. 8 on the PGA Tour money list based on his earnings from the four major championships. 

And at this pace, next year the majors will be the only...ah you know where I'm going with that. 

Hey, but a power game with stars only playing select events worked so well for tennis.

Tiger On Target

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TargetWorldLogo05.gifTiger Woods met with some of the games great scribblers on Tuesday to kick off the Target World Challenge week. Beforehand, he bombed drives out of the Sherwood Country Club range despite a headwind. More impressively, he then hit slice and draw wedges on the range for a handful of lucky folks, including his mom who had endure some annoying instructor telling her his life story. She's a saint. 

Anyway, I've never seen anyone draw or slice a wedge. These were not gently falling cuts or slight right-to-lefters helped by the wind. Draws and slices to a target 80 yards away. Amazing stuff.

The relaxed press conference took place in the claustrophobic Sherwood cart barn, where yours truly was on hand to take in the proceedings. The highlights:

Q. When did you know you wanted to open the learning center? How old were you and why is it so important to you?

TIGER WOODS: I really wanted to do it once I got out here. I wanted to have something tangible that kids could touch, kids could feel, they could be inside of. I thought what we were doing by going around the country and trying to inspire youth was great. We're just starting. We're in infancy stages. But I didn't think we were doing enough. We were kind of a circus, coming in for one week and we're gone. What about the other 51 weeks?

I wanted to do something that was going to be there permanently, something we could call home as a foundation for kids to come in, for kids to learn and grow, and I wanted them to create their own programs. The entire curriculum is based on their wants, their desires and their needs.

Now, some of us have been a bit skeptical about the learning center because of its cost ($25 million). Listening to Tiger talk about it in person and hearing his passion for the project, it is clear he has genuine pride in the Learning Center and how it has a chance to impact young people.

So yes, I feel like a jerk.

Later, a few questions were asked about the bomb-it-out-there-and-worry-about-the-consequences-later approach to golf, better known as flogging.

TIGER WOODS: It's how the game has changed. It's evolved. In essence, it's evolved in the fact that we're able to hit the ball greater distances. But again, the long hitters are still able to carry bunkers that the average guy can't carry. And that's how it used to be anyway.

I think technology now has spread out the guys a little bit more with the added physical strength of guys, too, guys getting to the gym and really working on becoming stronger and more flexible, are able to get a lot more speed. Add to that technology, in the shaft and heads. And more importantly, be able to marry up the shaft, the head, and the ball, because that was never the case. We all had persimmon drivers and let's just go play and hopefully we can get it out there.

After a few more questions about turning 30...

Q. There was a story in Golf World last week about performance enhancing drugs and steroids in golf and the possibility of it. Do you think there is a possibility that players are using anything and should there be perhaps a Tour policy or testing on that, either steroids or any kind of enhancing drug?

TIGER WOODS: There's always a possibility. Unless you're tested, there's always going to be a shadow of doubt on any sport. I don't see anyone out there who I would think would have finds of it, but who's to say there aren't. We don't know. We don't see any guys out there, 6 5, 240, 250, in shape, cut up, all ripped up. We don't have guys out there like that.

Q. Are you in favor of testing or do you think that's something that should be treated with a little more study?

TIGER WOODS: I think we should study it a little bit more before we get into something like that. Obviously it's a path that where do you draw the line? Do you do it on the PGA Tour nationwide but don't do it on any other tours leading up to that, or all professional golf.

Obviously there is a lot to it than just, okay, there's mandatory testing. Where does it start? Who does it? Who is in control of it? What are the substances that you're looking for. In the Olympics you can't take aspirin. A lot of guys live on aspirin out here.

They Just Don't Want To Believe in Flogging

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FlogGolf2.jpgPoor Tiger. No matter how many times he tells the golfing scribblers that his game is better than it's ever been, they refuse to believe him.

Bob Casper over at SI.com has been looking at Tiger's swing change patterns and equates the 1999-transition season with 2005, another transition year.

FYI: 1999 Tiger in the majors: T18-T3-T7-1; 2005 Tiger: 1-2-1-T4.

But Casper says 2006 will not like Tiger's 2000. Why? Five reasons, here's #1:

Earlier this year Tiger said, "driving accuracy means nothing these days, it's a non-stat." He had better reconsider that statement with two of the four majors being contest at traditional old -style layouts with majestic tree-lined fairways.

They've taken out a ton of trees at Winged Foot and apparently have done a fair amount of trimming over at Medinah, which may neutralize the whole "majestic tree-lined" thing.  The USGA's David Fay has said he would like to see 8-inch at Winged Foot (because this flogging thing is really shining a big annoying light on optimization), but they can't do that if the men in blue want to finish on Sunday. 

In 2000, Tiger hit 71.2 percent of his fairways. If he gets close to 70 percent in 2006, watch out. But that's a big if. Great scoring on golf courses is set up off the tee and Tiger needs to do a better job.

Sorry, that was five years ago. The game has changed and Tiger has not only kept up with the times, but established how the game will be played in the future.

It will be interesting to see how long people go before they realize the absurdity of grinding out tee shots and worrying about hitting fairways when 340 yard drives and proficiency with 15-footers far outweighs tee-shot accuracy. 

On another note, just in case you have an interest in meaningless trivia, reader Jon reports that "flog" (golf backwards) is a member of the palindrome family. It is a semordnilap.

A popular motivational saying goes, "Desserts is stressed spelled backwards." This is an example of a reversible word, which when read from the right yields another word. All of this week's words exhibit this quality. Just like reversible clothing that changes pattern when worn inside out, reversible words result in other usable words. A special case of reversible words are palindromes, which spell the same when reversed. So palindromes are a subset of reversible words which in turn are a subset of anagrams. Another name for reversible words is semordnilap, a self-referential word coined by reversing the word palindromes.

How about that news flash from the city!