In the world of golf punditry, the day after the Masters is overreaction Monday, especially when it comes to Tiger Woods. Here are three popular opinions from Monday: Woods is more hamstrung than ever by mechanical swing thoughts. This idea, often espoused by Brandel Chamblee of the Golf Channel, isn’t backed up by statistics. Woods’ ball striking was off in the Masters, but it has been stellar this year. He is tied for second in total driving and fourth in scoring average (69.63 per round). In addition, Woods’ putting — often the subject of scrutiny — has been strong as he ranks seventh in strokes gained (0.73 per round).
Woods’ fiery demeanor is now a detriment. Anyone who points to Woods’ drop-kicking his 9-iron as evidence of a problem has a short memory. Hasn’t Woods always reacted to bad shots this way, even in his prime?
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Woods shouldn’t have been the betting favorite. The popular belief Monday was that winning the Arnold Palmer Invitational is one thing but winning the Masters is another. Really? In 2009, in his first event of the year after revelations of marital infidelity, Woods tied for fourth at Augusta. In 2010, after failing to place inside the top ?10 in four PGA Tour events, Woods again tied for fourth.
Even in the worst of times, Woods could fall out of bed and play well at Augusta. This time, despite his track record, he didn’t. Woods had a bad tournament. It shouldn’t be viewed as anything more. After all, Jack Nicklaus missed the cut at the 1978 PGA Championship a month after winning the British Open.
– Kevin Dunleavy
