In 2013, Tiger Woods won five PGA Tour events (though no majors), finished in the top 10 in eight of 16 tournaments, never missed a cut, collected $8,553,439 in winnings and regained the world’s No. 1 ranking. All in all, that’s not bad for a guy who’s continually vilified by some for being sub-human off the course and a cheater on it.
There are two things I’ve come to learn about Woods since his full-time return to golf after his body started breaking down and his personal life morphed into a grease fire: 1) He’ll never dominate again because he’s not nearly as good as he used to be, and none of the top players are intimidated by him anymore; 2) The vitriol from critics is so over the top that it’s clear many have lost all objectivity about the man and his game.
Many wanted Woods disqualified from last year’s Masters for taking an improper drop in the second round. Masters officials cleared Woods on Friday but reversed field Saturday after being alerted by a TV viewer that Woods wasn’t dropping where he should’ve after his shot on No. 15 hit the flag stick and rolled into the water. He was penalized two strokes. Never before in sports history has a major event so empowered somebody sitting on a couch with a remote control and a bag of Cheetos.
There were similar incidents/charges of illegal drops at a tournament in Abu Dhabi and The Players Championship. In Abu Dhabi, Woods believed, and playing partner Martin Kaymer agreed, that he was entitled to relief because of where the ball landed in some vines. At the TPC, ex-golfer/noted sour puss Johnny Miller saw where Woods stood during a drop and said on NBC’s broadcast, “That Tiger drop was really, really borderline. I can’t live with myself without saying that.”
Of course, nobody backed him.
I understand how sacred golf’s rules are considered. But the extent to which Woods is being scrutinized now borders on absurd. Did it ever occur to anybody that in each instance of Woods’ alleged cheating, his playing partners agreed with his judgment on the ball’s lie, the applicable rule and the appropriate drop?
Woods isn’t merely the most closely watched golfer; he’s under a bigger microscope than most pro athletes in the world. He is not, with fans and TV cameras on him, going to believe he can cheat and get away with it.
We now live in the pile-on-Woods era, where apparently there are no rules.
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