The new normal: Tiger Woods misses the cut at the British Open
After shooting a 4-over 76 in Round 1 of the British Open, Tiger Woods explained why he still had a chance, despite being 11 strokes back:
“I’m so far back and the leaderboard is so bunched that in order for me to get in there by Sunday, I’m going to have to have the conditions tough and then obviously put together some really solid rounds. If you shoot some good, solid rounds in tough conditions like that, players can move up the board, and hopefully I’m one of them.”
Friday gave him exactly what he wanted – heavy rain followed by blustery winds. Aaaaand … Tiger went 1-over before play was suspended.
Saturday also gave him exactly what he wanted – wind gusting more than 25 mph. Aaaaand … Tiger went 2-over for a second-round 75 – 7-over for the tournament.
Now, for the second straight major, Woods missed the cut by a mile. Seven strokes at St. Andrews, backing up his 11-stroke deficit at last month’s U.S. Open.
We’re talking about strokes short of the cut here, not the lead.
This is where we’re at now in the demise of the greatest player of the 21st century. It’s gotten so bad we’re past the Schadenfreude stage, with the nanny-nanny boo-boos replaced by cringes.
Cringe-worthy is the perfect descriptor of Woods’ game these days. He can barely hit a fairway (59 percent this week), struggles to hit a green in regulation (23 of 36) and can’t knock down putts.
On 18, staring down a short birdie putt of about 5 feet, Tiger pushed it right in what amounts to a microcosm of his entire game.
The old Tiger knocked those down every time. Like every single time.
“I’m just not scoring. Every opportunity I have to make a key putt or hit an iron shot in there stiff with a short iron and get some momentum going, I haven’t done that,” he said after his round in one of his more honest moments. “I haven’t gotten anything out of my rounds. I’ll hit good shots, I’ll string together some good shots and good holes and put myself in position to make a run, and I don’t do it.”
He’s as bad now as he used to be good. Like him or not, that stinks, because however you feel about Tiger, he was always good theater. Was. And his chase of Jack Nicklaus’ record 18 majors, whether he ever got there or not, was a chase worth watching. Was.
There’s really no question anymore that he won’t get there. That’s fine. But let’s not go so far as to characterize his game now as Willie Mays manning centerfield in a Mets uniform. Tiger may be past his prime, but he’s only 39, hardly a time for him to hang it up.
The push for that comes from without – from us. More precisely, from those who think just because he’s no longer the player he was means he should no longer try, lest he tarnish the shine on a once-brilliant career.
Blah blah blah.
No, this wasn’t the ending we foresaw nearly 20 years ago when a 21-year-old lapped the field at Augusta. And it is stunning that the downfall of Tiger Woods, the most mentally tough athlete this side of Michael Jordan, is coming from between the ears. But it’s the ending we’re getting, and we were never guaranteed anything else.
There’s still fight in Tiger, which is why he continues to try to convince everyone, maybe even himself, that he’s got a shot. On some weekends down the road, he will, no doubt about that. Some, just not most.
“Keep going. Keep going forward,” he said Saturday. “I play in a couple weeks in D.C., so looking forward to playing the Quicken Loans, and hopefully win that event so I can get into a place that I know very well.”
A place he used to know well. He hasn’t been there in two years.
Everything’s different now. He’s no longer the player to beat, not the intimidator he once was, the red shirt on Sundays (if he even gets there) not meaning what it used to. Other than the 14 majors on his résumé and the few hundred million in the bank, he’s just another player in the field.
It’s time to get used to that. Time to be OK with it.
