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Tiger Woods out of Genesis Open and Honda Classic

Are we putting too much pressure on Tiger Woods?

After more struggles on the opening day of the Dubai Desert Classic, NCG’s Craig Middleton asks: Is it time to cut Tiger Woods some slack?

 

It has not been the comeback Tiger Woods or his army of loyal followers wanted. Woods followed last week’s missed cut at Torrey Pines with a lethargic display in his opening round at the Dubai Desert Classic.

Woods is currently at No. 666 in the world rankings, but there was nothing devilish about his 5-over round of 77 at Emirates Golf Club, a round that included five bogeys and not a single birdie as his usually reliable Scotty Cameron putter let him down in a round that never really threatened to get into a rhythm.

Historically his record at the Dubai Desert Classic is pretty impressive. His opening two rounds on his first visit in 2001 were a pair of 64s and between 2004 and 2008 he had eight consecutive rounds in the 60s, with two wins thrown in for good measure.

More recently though Woods has struggled in the Middle East. In 2014 he shot rounds of 68, 73, 70 and 71 to finish in 41st place, and in 2011 Woods carded a final round 75 to finish just inside the top 20, which at the time was his highest ever round in the tournament.

Until today.

Setting my alarm for 4am to catch Woods’ opening tee shot was not problematic for me – I am, after all, one of his biggest fans. But a huge pull left and a missed par putt later and I was almost cowering back to the comfort of my bed.

Normally so reliable with the flatstick in his hands, Woods quite simply had a stinker on the greens today – perhaps the worst putting display I’ve ever seen from the 14-time major champion – as his line and pace persistently let him down.

During his glory days, Tiger made 427 consecutive putts from inside three feet. On Thursday alone he missed two. That is how far off he is at the moment, and until he can regain some sort of form with the putter, there isn’t a single player on Tour who won’t believe they can’t beat him.

It’s not all doom and gloom for the former world No. 1 though. Despite rounds of 76, 72 and 77 since his long awaited comeback, there are signs that he is more in control of his game; it’s a lot tidy and not nearly as erratic. Need I remind you of his 85 at the 2015 Memorial? (Let’s take a look anyway…)

Some of the shots he played during that round were almost impossible to explain and so out of character for a player that not only dominated the game for so long, but changed the face of it.

This side of his game hasn’t resurfaced in this latest comeback (yet) but his driving is still not where it should be, or needs to be, and at times at Torrey Pines his swing mimicked that of a mid-handicap golfer.

Though on Thursday, despite missing a few fairways, off the tee he was OK. His last drive of the day was actually 51 yards ahead of Danny Willett and 20 yards in front of Matt Fitzpatrick. So the myth that Tiger can’t keep up with the big boys anymore is probably a little far fetched.

But since his last win more than three years ago, he has undergone back surgery more times than he’s had top 10s. He also went a full year without any competitive golf at all. Are we expecting too much of him to just come back in and shoot four consecutive rounds in the 60s and get back to the Tiger of old?

The pressure on him is immense, not only from baying media, but the armchair critics on social media and those watching from the other side of the ropes. The questions are always the same: Will he win again? Will he get that 15th major? Is he finished?

A 5-over par in good scoring conditions is simply not good enough and he’ll need to shoot something in the mid-60s on Friday to avoid missing the cut. But let’s bear in mind that this was just his third round of competitive golf in more than a year – and even the best of the best need to be cut a bit of slack now and then.

YOUR SAY: Is Tiger chasing something that just isn’t there anymore? Or can he still be competitive on the PGA and European Tours? Let us know in the comments below, or via Twitter.

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