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“Have we seen the best of Tiger Woods?” the world's greatest living golfer was asked before the beginning of the 2011 Masters Tournament, Wood's latest chance to win his 15th major title.
“No,” Woods said flatly, “I believe in myself. ... The whole idea is that you can always become better.”
In the past, heads would have readily nodded in agreement. Certainly, Tiger has earned the faith of thousands since he turned pro at age 21.
But many believe that the Tiger today is a far cry from the from the godlike figure that he was a few years back. Among the unbelievers is Englishman Ian Poulter, who said he couldn
't see Woods finish inside the top five at the Masters.
He said: “He hasn't done it for a while, but I think that if he starts to hole the putts at the right time you are going to see the Tiger of old and that is dangerous. But I don't see it this week – I just don't see it myself.”
And Poulter has the leaderboard to back him up: Woods has not won a golf tournament anywhere in the world in the last 17 months. He has fallen to seventh in the world rankings, the lowest ranking since his first Masters Tournament. He made a promising comeback from his five-month hiatus, but has since only delivered two wins against a series of bad runs.
Some speculate that Tiger is still dealing with being a divorcee and the still warm backlash from his 2009 scandal. Others point Sean Foley, his new coach-philosopher, who's “helping” Tiger overhaul his stance for a more upright swing.
So, will Tiger reclaim his past glory? He still might. After all, he's always been up for a challenge and has proven his critics wrong many times.
Even Poulter agrees. “You can never rule out Tiger,” he said, “We've seen him hit the shots in various situations when he has put himself in trouble.”
Tiger believes in himself – that hasn't changed. If he keeps it up, maybe his luck would.
Tiger Woods, Golf, Masters, Tournament, Ian Poult...