[ad_1]
CARNOUSTIE, Scotland – The approach of Tiger Woods in the first hole Sunday at the Open dropped to 15 feet from the hole and the roars could be heard until Dundee.
Four holes later, he rolled in his first birdie of the day and the roars echoed through Carnoustie, an unmistakable statement that was impossible to ignore. Another birdie at No. 6 propelled him to third place, two strokes behind.
On the eve of the last run, Jordan Spieth, who took the lead in the last lap, said Woods was in the game. It was a dream come true.
"I've always wanted to beat me against Tiger … Who does not?" He says.
Those of a certain age will say to pay attention to what you want. Players like Ernie Els, a perennial bridesmaid of Tiger in his prime, and Phil Mickelson might say that Woods in the middle of the flight is a punch in the gut, an unstoppable force that leaves the best game to question their career choices.But on the way to what might have been Woods' biggest win, he stumbled, inexplicably.There was a botched double bogey-6 at the 11th hole after he tried to be a little too cute with a chip.He added a bogey at number 12 and never really recovered.
Woods took the long view after his tie for sixth place, three shots behind the eventual winner Francesco Molinari Perspective has been Tiger's best ally throughout this comeback.
"I was saying at the moment that I should try to keep it in perspective because at the beginning of the year, they would have said that you were playing The Open Championship" I think I would be very lucky to do that, "said Woods.
When some will see progress, others will notice that for the third time this season, Woods has failed to convert on a Sunday. first at the Valspar Championship, then at the Arnold Palmer Invitational and now at the Open
Most players agree that it's just a matter of time before Woods breaks the ceiling, but his playing time his injuries and his recent work have undoubtedly eroded his once-famous aura
Full field scores of the 147th Open Championship
Full coverage of the 147th Open Championship [19659012TherewasatimewhenthenameofWoodsatthetopofaleaderboardonaSuNdayespeciallyatamajorwouldsendchillsacrossthebaseThisisnotnecessarilythecasenow
"It's not Tiger, Phil, Ernie and these guys – it's a different version," said Rory McIlroy, who tied for second place after 70th place. "But he's here, he's in the mix, he looked good in DC a few weeks ago, he looks good here."
McIlroy, one the most authentic and direct players of the game, do not take a ball in Woods. He simply declares a fact. Until Tiger is able to convert any of these opportunities, until he shows the world that he is the same player, even for a day, as there is ten years, there will be no intimidation, at least not this generation of stars. ] For players like Spieth and Xander Schauffele, who had not finished high school when Woods won his last big promotion in 2008, the guy in red and black is the stuff of YouTube videos, an icon , no doubt, but not the unstoppable force that cast an unmistakable shadow on the game.
On Sunday at Carnoustie, players certainly knew what was going on while Tiger was doing his charge, but he did not seem to suck the The air of the room as before. [19659002] "I saw it on the green # 7 or # 8, and it was by accident." I looked up and saw Tiger at No. 1, and he was leading alone, and I went to Michael [Greller] "Dammit, I looked at the painting, dude," Speith said. "I was as frustrated with myself. He said: "He has not held this position for 10 years, and you've been here for how many times in the past three years?" He wanted to throw it to me. I was like, I feel good. It's good. That's what you dream of anyway. "
Earlier this season in Tampa, Woods needed a birdie to tie his head at the 72nd hole and he left with a conservative approach with an iron.A week later, in Bay Hill, it was a drive that left the limits of the 16th hole, which widened its chances of winning the title.On Sunday at Carnoustie, it was a two-hole stretch that was unthinkable [19659002] No matter how you cut it, the Woods game has improved considerably this season, but it remains Sunday's elephant in the room until it's over. lost
"With the tiger we face, he does things that he may not have done 10 or 15 years ago," McIlroy said. is always great for golf. It will be interesting to see it go forward, but it was his first foretaste of a major championship. Even though he won 14 [majors] you must learn to come back. I'm learning again. I have the impression of having won a few recently, but still need to relearn how to deal with it.
If Tiger is able to relearn this singular skill that has made him the closest to the game, this new generation will discover his predecessors knew so well – the true meaning of intimidation.
Source link
