Sunday, September
29, 2002
Ryder Cup and Woods
just don't mix
By David Whitley
The Orlando Sentinel
SUTTON COLDFIELD,
England - Tiger Woods slept well Saturday night, knowing he had
finally put something to bed.
He's a pampered poodle
who treats the Ryder Cup as if it's his personal fire hydrant.
That notion had been all the rage in Europe this fall, and Woods
had mainly himself to thank.
He stuck his Nikes
in his mouth by saying he'd rather win last week's World Golf
Championships than the Ryder Cup. He made it worse by saying he
could think of a million reasons why.
As in the $1 million
first prize. The Ryder Cup is supposed to be for God, country
and NBC, though not necessarily in that order.
The British press
ripped Woods for not being a team player. He was ripped for not
wearing the same outfit as his partner. He was ripped when his
girlfriend yawned. He couldn't have gotten worse publicity if
he'd started dating Camilla Parker Bowles.
"It was tough
sleeping last night," he said Saturday.
The criticism didn't
bother him. It was losing his two matches Friday. The day illustrated
why Woods and the Ryder Cup simply do not mix.
Tiger's whole life
is based on control, and this is the one event where he must give
it up. He can't wear what he wants or practice when he wants or
workout when he wants. But worse than all, he is not the master
of his domain.
He can play great
and lose. That's why he said he'd even rather win at Disney than
The Belfry. A lot of people love to pounce on Mr. Perfect, and
Woods handed them a golden hammer. Even people who know him were
a bit baffled by Tiger's supposed disdain for one of golf's great
traditions.
"Maybe he's
trying to take some of the pressure off," Casey Martin told
the Sentinel's Steve Elling last week. "I don't know."
What he does know
is Woods was a devoted teammate at Stanford. He played one match
while throwing up sick and needing an IV drip in his arm. And
he certainly didn't do it for $1 million.
Tiger doesn't need
the money. What he needs, or at least wants, is to be left alone.
He loves golf, but
he seems to hate everything surrounding it. The news conferences,
banquets and social issues distract him from the thing he's built
his life around.
Winning.
His 3-8-1 record
before Saturday was largely just one of those inexplicable Ryder
Cup things, like Lee Westwood getting seven birdies. He hasn't
had seven birdies all year.
So what did Tiger
do? He had eight birdies.
All that, and Woods
still almost lost, since partner Davis Love III was basically
a 200-pound dead weight around his neck. Tiger finished the day
2-0, despite again wearing a different colored shirt than his
teammate.
"Maybe he'll
sleep a little better tonight," Love said.
Since people equated
losing with not caring, they should now apply the same logic in
reverse. Not that Tiger lost any sleep over that.
He drifted off knowing
today is singles matches. Win or lose, he'll have nobody but himself
to blame. That's the way Woods likes it.
It would be nice
if he'd loosen up, let his guard down and maybe take a stand on
something beyond the Nike golf ball. There are a million reasons
he drives people crazy, some of them are even legit.
But when it comes
to one man having to take one shot to win the Ryder Cup or save
the world, there is one preeminent reason you want him out there.
He's Tiger Woods.
___
© 2002, The
Orlando Sentinel (Fla.).
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