Tiger Woods still has the power as tour bends to his whims

Published on Saturday 20 February 2010 20:23

YOU HAD to laugh really. Forever separated by a common language, initial reactions to the oh-so carefully stage-managed performance of Tiger Woods on Friday only served to underline the differences between the UK and the US of A when it comes to cynicism levels.

"That was a genuine and authentic Tiger Woods," said former PGA Tour player Charlie Rymer on the Golf Channel, immediately after the world No 1 finished up his 14-minute monologue. Meanwhile, across the Atlantic, former European Tour professional Robert Lee was opining that the familiar figure watched by millions across the globe had been a "shadow of the real Tiger Woods. He was like a zombie and clearly nowhere near ready to play golf".

Rymer wasn't alone though. As you'd expect, Tiger's swing coach was supportive of his long-time pupil. "I thought he did a great job," enthused Hank Haney via e-mail.

Which was in marked contrast to the prevailing attitude amongst Tiger's peers. In the days leading up to the most celebrated mea culpa since Bill Clinton didn't have sexual relations with that woman, many PGA Tour players were becoming increasingly irritated by the apparent arrogance of the 14-time major champion.

"Guys were a bit annoyed that Tiger chose to hold his press conference during the tournament," says one high-profile player. "It wasn't that anyone thought he was stealing our thunder. It was seen more as a power play on his part. He could easily have done it on Monday.

"The players were actually more annoyed with (PGA Tour commissioner Tim] Finchem letting Tiger do whatever he wants. It was like, 'hang on a minute, you're the one who screwed up, not us'. So he should have been told to do it on Monday somewhere other than Sawgrass and that the PGA Tour wasn't going to facilitate this rubbish.

"So it was the timing of it and the fact that Finchem just dropped everything and said, 'okay, whatever you want Tiger'. That's embarrassing when you think about it. But, at the end of the day, Tiger still has the power. Finchem needs Tiger more than Tiger needs the tour."

That much is certainly true. Especially in a bad economy, the presence of the man many think is the greatest golfer of all-time and who is currently the most famous athlete on the planet – a unique accolade for a golfer – is a must-have for the PGA Tour in the up-coming contract negotiations with the various television networks.

Strong rumour has it also, that the PGA Tour, not so long ago one of the strongest and most financially secure sporting organisations anywhere, is unravelling more than a bit. According to at least one informed source, as many as five events could be disappearing off the schedule for next year. Times are tough and sponsors are running for the hills, making it more than likely that those qualified to play on the world's richest circuit will in 2011 either be playing for less money or playing less often.

That isn't all bad news, of course. To many observers, there are currently too many tournaments. Where fans are ready to watch maybe 20 events each offering big purses and strong fields, far fewer are prepared to take in 35. Which is why hardly anyone watches events like the John Deere Classic, especially before the weekend. It's just not that good a product. There are no top-level pros playing, or at least none of the exciting ones.

If there were only 20 US-based events, the best players would play in nearly all of them. Plus, that would leave room for the majors, the world golf championships and, for even the travel-shy Americans, trips to burgeoning golf destinations like the Middle East and the Far East.

Still, the biggest key to all of the above remains the presence of Tiger. Hence Finchem's eagerness to please on Friday and never mind the sensibilities of Accenture, sponsors of the World Match Play Championship that will conclude today. For the beleaguered commissioner this was much more about preserving the long-term future of his tour than it was risking the loss of one event, no matter how popular.

"Tiger speaking out was a step in the right direction and it was necessary," concedes former US Open champion Geoff Ogilvy. "But the scary thing was he made it sound like a long time until he plays again. I'm looking forward to seeing him play again and listening to him answering some questions. I'd love to see him sit down and have a nice chat with the golf journalists. I think everyone would like to see him do that. He doesn't have to answer tough questions, just real ones. That's the next step."

While that is undoubtedly true. Judged solely on Friday's performance, Woods appears some way from inviting any of the media round to his place for a cozy chat by the fireside. Just about the only parts of his generally robotic speech that rang completely true for this observer were those where he went on the attack, lambasting the media for its treatment of his wife and children. That was the real Woods, the snarling Tiger we have become used to over the last 15 years.

As for the rest of his statement, it was hard to fully buy into because it was so obviously staged. Tiger was almost reading us the page numbers as he spoke: "And now, page two." He also sounded very coached, for the most part speaking slowly and looking straight into the camera at just the right moments. On this evidence, true redemption remains some way off.