Tuesday, August 21, 2001
Tour veteran Hale Irwin warns of too much
Tiger
By CHUCK CAVALARIS
Scripps Howard News Service
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Many people look at Tiger Woods and see
the single greatest thing to ever happen to the game.
Hale Irwin sees a drawback to having the most marketable face
on the planet as your poster child.
“A monster has been created,” Irwin said Monday after
his morning clinic at the annual BellSouth/Patricia Neal Classic
at Holston Hills Country Club. “It's a huge monster, too.
“There are financial implications for people who aren't getting
the (endorsement) opportunities they deserve or the full recognition
they have earned. People look at the ratings that are down, because
Tiger either isn't playing or he isn't playing well, and say the
interest in golf is down. There is a very serious domino effect
and we need to somehow correct that.”
Like some others, Irwin has become increasingly alarmed at the
emphasis placed on whether Woods enters a tournament — and
then is in contention on the weekend.
An event that he skips automatically loses its luster. Let him
struggle, even in one of golf's four majors like the PGA Championship,
and the overnight ratings plummet.
“If you pick up a newspaper today, it's going to say the
golf ratings are down because Tiger wasn't in contention,”
Irwin said. “I think a lot of people grow weary of reading
about 'Tiger this or Tiger that.' There are other people out there.
There's more to the game of golf.
“We have put so much into Tiger Woods — in ratings and
popularity — and whether it's a Tiger tournament or a non-Tiger
tournament and whether you Tiger-proof this course or not,”
Irwin said. “Now it's like the whole golf industry can suffer
whether he is on or off.
“I just think that's placing too much emphasis on Tiger as
a huge importance in the game. Even Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer
weren't that big and I don't see Tiger being bigger than either
one of those.”
The 56-year-old Irwin is a Ryder Cup veteran who ranks as one
of the top golfers in the world.
He holds the Senior PGA Tour record for victories (31), including
at least four titles per season for four consecutive years. He
also has three U.S. Open victories among 20 wins on the PGA Tour.
Irwin has tapered off his schedule slightly this year after the
birth of his first grandchild and the continued success of his
golf-course-design business. He said the Monday and Tuesday corporate
outings on behalf of BellSouth might take a hit next year.
“Nothing is for sure in this day and age,” he said.
“The one problem I think I face today is motivation. The
tournaments are special, they really are, and I don't want to
downplay them. But the major ones — the big wins — they
are fantastic. I guess those make some of the others pale in comparison.”
Irwin's facial expression suddenly changed as his thoughts turned
to the dramatic victory by David Toms a day earlier in the PGA
Championship at Atlanta Athletic Club. It was almost as if Irwin
were reliving some of his past glory. He was a standout defensive
back at the University of Colorado and won the 1967 NCAA Championship
in golf.
“Go talk David Toms today,” said Irwin, who made one
of the most memorable putts in golf history to force an 18-hole
playoff that he won at the 1990 U.S. Open at Medinah. “Just
see what a high that young man is on. That is what is invigorating.
Anything less than that is still good, but it isn't quite like
the others. It's kind of hard to compare something to what might
have been the best day of your life.”
(Contact Chuck Cavalaris of The Knoxville News-Sentinel in Tennessee
at http://www.knoxnews.com.)
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