Tiger Woods Caps 2018 Season With a Win at The Tour Championship

ATLANTA – When the last chapter is penned in the groundbreaking and infinitely complicated life of Tiger Woods, Sept. 23, 2018, may get lost in the details.

His two-stroke victory at the Tour Championship on Sunday was impressive by any measure, but it wouldn’t qualify as his most dominant or his most clinical performance. If we’re being honest, his 80th PGA Tour bottle cap was like so many others, a battle of attrition that never allowed for a modicum of doubt.

There was a three-stroke lead to start the day, a birdie at the first to pad his advantage and a parade of nondescript pars that gave the season’s final round a marching band to nowhere feel. Given the gravity of what was a seminal moment in his career it felt so mundane, but then that’s always been the hallmark of his greatness.

After four back surgeries, four knee surgeries, an arrest for driving under the influence and more cringe moments than an episode of “America’s Got Talent,” this victory was so much more than the sum of its parts.

Social media was abuzz in the aftermath of Woods’ walk-off. From the depths of pain, pedestrian performances and poor choices Tiger put an exclamation point on what was already a successful return.

It had some calling this the greatest comeback in the history of sports, but then the car Woods was driving last Memorial Day only bounced off a few curbs, not a bus.

To be historically aware, Ben Hogan’s comeback after nearly dying in a car crash in 1949, a horrific event that was followed by a run that included eight major victories, should be considered the category leader on this front.

But as Tiger whipped a day’s worth of sweat from his face and considered his answer the more relevant question is where the 2018 Tour Championship ranks on his own lifetime resume.

“It’s certainly up there with obviously all the major championships I’ve won, Players, World Golf Championships. But this is under different circumstances,” said Woods, who closed with a 71 at East Lake for his first Tour victory since the 2013 WGC-Bridgestone Invitational. “I just didn’t know whether this would ever happen again.”

Woods is normally averse to this type of nostalgia, but even if he wanted to take a deeper dive it’s not a debate that lends itself to instant analysis. When your career has been a nonstop highlight reel of fist pumps and unforgettable moments there’s no easy way to rank greatness.

For some, the 1997 Masters, his first major championship, stands alone as a career high-water mark; while others may lean toward the 2000 U.S. Open where he lapped the field by 15 strokes.

“Those were special because of the way he did it,” said Butch Harmon, Tiger’s swing coach from August 1993 to August 2002. But for Harmon the Tour Championship was different. “He had a chance to win the last two majors. It’s impressive that just two years ago he couldn’t pitch the ball on the green. It’s not exactly Ben Hogan, but it’s along those lines.”

As far as clinical brilliance, most would say the 2006 Open Championship at Royal Liverpool is the benchmark. It was Tiger’s first victory after his father, Earl, died following a brutal bout with cancer and was nothing short of a ball-striking show.

“That was his best ball-striking tournament he’s ever had. That’s a different deal,” said Hank Haney, who served as Tiger’s second set of eyes from March 2004 to May 2010.

But it’s the 2008 U.S. Open at Torrey Pines that may stand as the competitive and physical pinnacle of Tiger’s career. On a broken leg with a torn ACL he endured 72 grueling holes to finish tied with Rocco Mediate and eventually prevailed on the first hole of a sudden death playoff after 18 holes on Monday.

“That’s No. 1, it’s not even close,” Haney said. “He didn’t win [at East Lake] with a broken leg. At the U.S. Open he won on one leg. It is unbelievable that he came back from four back operations, but once you’ve established that you’re back and you’re healthy you knew he’s going to win. A lot of things had to happen, he got off the prescription drugs and got his back healthy. But I felt like this was going to happen and he’s not done.”

But if the ’08 U.S. Open is the standard by which Tiger’s career will always be measured, his performance at East Lake deserves to be considered with a wider lens. This wasn’t about fairways hit or birdies made, this was about rounding a corner many never imagined he could.

At his darkest moments last year there was doubt he’d ever be able to swing a golf club again, never mind throw an 11-under total at the world’s best. The game had passed him by the critics claimed and even if he did find his way off the surgeon’s table the current cast and crew were a different breed who would be immune to his dominant ways and the aura he once held over the game.

This wasn’t Hoylake in ’06 or Pebble Beach in ’00, but in many ways it was better. There’s nothing better in sports than a comeback story and Tiger’s journey from a broken and burdened man to beaming on a final green is nothing short of a reinvention.

“The world is full of people who want to see a comeback story. We’re all coming back from something, so when you see someone do it inspires people to fight through it,” said Sean Foley, who stepped in for Haney in August 2010 and served as Woods’ swing coach until August 2014.

It was only last summer that the most common image of Tiger was a mug shot taken after his DUI arrest. The grainy image looking back at the world was a testament to how far he’d fallen, an unshaven and blurry-eyed shadow of the player who once seemed so untouchable. He couldn’t play golf, he couldn’t even ride in a golf cart his back hurt so bad, and his inability to do the one thing he was truly great at left Tiger to his own devices.

As he recovered from fusion surgery on his lower back he began to miss the game and the things that he’d done to transform it. As he returned, slowly at first before picking up the pace this summer, he allowed the world to see a different side, a player who was appreciative of what amounted to a final chance to be great.

There was emotion on Sunday and unbridled joy. His first victory in five years may defy assessment, but for Tiger there was so much more to his week in Atlanta than the history books could ever reveal.

“It’s totally different because of what he’s been through, but I’d have to put [his victory at East Lake] up there with one of his greatest victories ever because of what he’s been through, the mental and physical, the disgrace,” Harmon said.

Maybe the 2018 Tour Championship won’t go down as Tiger’s masterpiece when he hangs up his Nikes. Maybe what awaits will be the true measure of his genius.

“The greatest accomplishment in sports is going to be when he’s No. 1 again and that’s going to be pretty soon,” Haney said. “When he returns to No. 1 it won’t be a debate.”

With fans stacked five and six rows deep along every fairway, probably the biggest crowd East Lake has seen since Bobby Jones was stalking the rolling hills, Tiger played the script he invented, a bullish version of what Stewart Cink once called a prevent defense.

The only change to this all-too-familiar routine was the pregnant pause he allowed himself after putting out on the 18th hole, slamming his putter into the ground and raising his arms in triumph.

In a historic twist it was the same green where Jones, who pulled off an impressive comeback of his own once, ended his golf career. It was only apropos that Tiger would complete his comeback and restart his career on the same spot.

By: Rex Hoggard | Source: golfchannel.com

HANG IN THERE: HERE ARE 11 REASONS WHY YOU AREN’T GETTING ANY BETTER AT GOLF (BUT SHOULD STILL HAVE HOPE)

Golf is like sex. Some people do it for years and never improve. But why? With input from GOLF Magazine Top 100 instructor Jon Tattersall, we’ve drawn up a list of the 11 reasons why you may not be getting better at life’s (second) most enjoyable pursuit.

1. You never practice

You know that whole 10 thousand hours thing? How it takes at least that long to master a skill? Do the math. Ten minutes once a month isn’t going to get you there.

2. You practice unproductively

Smacking drivers on the range until you’re blue in the face might give you a backache. But it’s not going to get you where you want to go. What you need to do is practice with a purpose. “Go to the range to get better at one thing, posture for example,” Tattersall says.  “Once you’ve spent 30 minutes working on that and incorporating into your swing, leave the range.”

3. Your equipment isn’t optimized

“That includes your golf ball,” says Tattersall, who recommends getting your entire arsenal checked at least once a year.

4. You’ve got the wrong mix of clubs

News flash. You’ve got no business carrying a two-iron. You’re also probably not good enough to have more wedges than hybrids in your bag.

5. You don’t track your stats

You think you’re a great putter, and a middling driver. But are you really? Without knowing for sure, you can’t maximize your practice time, much less devise an optimal on-course strategy.

6. You’re not as good as you think you are

Two-twenty over water is not in your wheelhouse, but you always try it, because, well, your weakness is your fondness for the hero shot.

7. You’re too hard on yourself

On approach shots from 150 yards, the average Tour pro leave is 23 feet from the pin. But you somehow believe you should be knocking down the flagstick, so you berate yourself every time you don’t.

8. You ride a cart

You think you’re saving energy. What you’re really doing is losing touch with the natural rhythms of the game.

9. You think there’s a quick-fix

In a world filled with swing tips, you believe there’s a magic one that will solve all your problems. So you search, and search. You might as well be trying to track down Sasquatch, Tattersall says. “The tough news is it comes down to working on good principles long enough for them to become habits.”

10. You’re don’t hit it far enough

Sorry, but size matters. A good way to get better is to swing the club the faster to hit the ball longer. “Any good coach can correct crooked,” Tattersall says. “Getting the ball to go farther is a tougher task.”

11. You focus more on words than feel

You’ve gotten a lot of verbal instruction. But, Tattersall says, “Words don’t translate as well to performance.” Pay more attention to images and feels. It will free up your mind. And your swing.

Source: www.golf.com

Callaway Ball Fitting Day

Callaway Ball Fitting Day 

Oct 24th from 12 – 2 pm, By Appointment Only!

Test Your Ball vs. Callaway Chrome Soft

Receive a Free Two Ball Pack for Participating. 

NWGA Pro Am at The Preserve at Turnbull Bay

The Preserve at Turnbull Bay will be hosting the NWGA on Sept 29th – Oct 1st for the Ladies Classic. On Friday, Sept 28th you could play with them in the 1st Annual NWGA Pro-Am. You and two other friends will be paired up with a National Women’s Golf Association Pro. We will be a 4 Person Scramble with breakfast and lunch and prizes after the round. Raffles, Contests, 50-50 and much much more. Then come on out and cheer on the pros the next three days.

Great Prizes include Rounds to Great Local Golf Courses and Restaurants as well as 4 Rounds to Streamsong Golf Course and much much more.

Also, Check out the Callaway Fitting Day happening on Saturday Sept 29th. Sign up at the pro shop and get fitted for your next set of callaway clubs.

Sign up early and get a discount on your entry fee before Sept 1st. Save $25 if paying individually or $100 if paying for entire group. Max 3 players per group. Open to the public. Follow the links below to sign up and pay.

Summer Aerification Special – $20 for 18 Holes Sept 4th – Sept 10th

The Preserve started its summer green aerification maintenance, which we are punching small 1/4″ holes (size of a #2 pencil) in the green and then a light sanding. Because of the slight inconvenience on the excellent Paspalum Greens, we are offering a special rate of $20 for 18 Holes and $15 for 9 Holes from Now thru Monday, Sept 10th.

Check Out Upcoming Events at The Preserve!

 

 

All is Welcome to Sign Up for the Pro Am