Tiger's Return

pgprescott

lousubcap said:

@pgprescott -  you can only beat those who tee it up.  As I said, you really can't measure across the generations but I would offer that  Palmer, Player and the rest of the field were not aiming for second place.  And so it goes-

I was nearly undefeated on my ping pong table way back in th day. That said, I'm confident that had I faced some of today's ping pong players, I would have been slaughtered. I get your point, but as the dollars increased so did the competition. The odds today of one of the many players getting hot over four days is exponentially greater than it was 30-40 years ago. It's simply a much deeper field to wade through. Remember, in stroke play golf, you must beat everyone. For instance, if you are four shots behind and there is one person four shots ahead, you have a much greater chance of winning than if there are eight people between you and the leader four strokes ahead. It matters, and the depth today is most obviously tremendous. This is why it will be so difficult for Tiger to overcome it. 

HeavyG

SaintJohnsEgger said:

He may be great for the game but I lost all respect for him after his series of hooker escapades.

It certainly doesn't excuse his behavior but Tiger's behavior in that regard isn't any different than many other professional athletes in other sports or in the PGA. 

His behavior just happened in a different media environment which made things vey public. There have been many an article and a few books published over the last few decades talking about the wild times and life on the Tour. They weren't all saints even back in the "good old days".

HeavyG

pgprescott said:

Keep in mind Lou, every week Jack played there were probably five guys who were good enough to win and three of them were drunk when they tee'd off every day. To Jacks credit he took things more seriously than his contemporaries. In Tigers day there are a couple hundred guys who can win any given week, and they are sober, trained, and focused. It's apples and oranges my friend. 

Absolutely. The amount of money to be won on the Tour these days really brings a different level of competitor and deeper competition to the game than back in Jack's or Arnie's days.

YEMTrey

I wholeheartedly agree with the quality of talent and athletes on tour these days.
On a side note, I think it would be really cool if just for one week of the season the PGA Tour had a "retro" tournament.  Complete with persimmon woods, butter knife blades, and non-loaded golf balls.  Would be really cool to see today's players with that equipment and see what kind of game and scores were played. 

pgprescott

YEMTrey said:

I wholeheartedly agree with the quality of talent and athletes on tour these days.
On a side note, I think it would be really cool if just for one week of the season the PGA Tour had a "retro" tournament.  Complete with persimmon woods, butter knife blades, and non-loaded golf balls.  Would be really cool to see today's players with that equipment and see what kind of game and scores were played. 

Greens mowed to a speedy 6-7? 6500 yards? It would be like throwing darts. 

jabam

He is definitely great for the game, brings in viewers and sponsors. But I still don't like him, and root against him vigorously, much the same as I root against that NFL team from New England ( Dolphin fan here).