Someone finally said it

[SupaDave]

True, that. I guess it was the sight of Phil Mickelson and Paddy Harrington and Sergio Garcia signing autographs and patting kids on the head that kind of confused me. Those pikers.....

Actually glad you mentioned Phil b/c as you will see from the link - it's all a matter of perspective...

http://golf.about.com/b/2006/01/26/p...-hated-man.htm

[cato]

True, that. I guess it was the sight of Phil Mickelson and Paddy Harrington and Sergio Garcia signing autographs and patting kids on the head that kind of confused me. Those pikers.....

So, basically, your beef with Tiger is that he is not a likeable as some of the other guys on the course.

[JasonEvans]

Actually glad you mentioned Phil b/c as you will see from the link - it's all a matter of perspective...

http://golf.about.com/b/2006/01/26/p...-hated-man.htm

FIGJAM

Now that is funny.

--Jason "_____ I’m good — just ask me." Evans

[Channing]

I love watching Tiger play, but I am not sure why intense focus and decent golf course behavior can't be one in the same.

Its more a matter of self control, and acting like an adult on the course. I have not seen as many outbursts from Tiger as others, but if the article is accurate, its pretty shameful behavior.

[Turk]

First, let's talk about the source. I (usually) like Reilly's stuff. He loves golf and knows it well. ("Who's Your Caddy?" or his collection of SI columns are great beach reads for even the casual sports fan.) He is also the de facto president of the Phil Mickelson fan club.

Exhibit A: an SI column from 2002:
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/ins...ife_of_reilly/

Exhibit B: a Worldwide Leader piece prior to the 2008 U.S. Open at Torrey Pines:
http://sports.espn.go.com/espnmag/story?id=3436089

Last week, the golf gods decided to remind Tiger he's still human. Tiger proved them correct not only by missing the cut, but also by throwing some F-bombs and slamming a club or several. For the first time ever, Tiger cracked under pressure in a major and did not handle it well. Since Reilly is not a Tiger fan, he decided to write a Grumpy Old Man piece about it. Feh.

Here's my bias test: suppose Philly Mick had played and acted *exactly* as the Tigger did at Turnberry, and suppose Phil's wife is 100% healthy so the sympathy angle is off the table. Would Reilly have written the same piece about Phil? Of course not; he's friends with Phil, not Tiger.

Second, let's talk about slamming clubs. We all agree that's bad behavior, and no one would teach their kids it's OK. But let's be honest here. Many of the same hypocrites who act like an angel on the golf course (or in church, for that matter) will cheerfully cut other cars off, flip the bird to their drivers, and curse at any offense on the drive home, never mind what they do once they actually get home. This is kerfluffle and El Tigre gets a pass from me. (Whew, I bet that's a load off his mind...)

[rthomas]

Look, I know how Tiger feels. Becasue I am the Tiger of Professordom. I go to the gym on campus and hords of undergrads come up to me screaming, "Dr. Thomas, Dr. Thomas, you are my hero." And I say "Hey I'm trying to pump some iron here." and they are screaming "you are my favorite professor, my favorite. I love you." and I say "you blankety-blank students, leave me alone can't you see I'm concentrating."

I try to ignore them as I am trying to bench press 90 pounds. But it's impossible.

[SupaDave]

Look, I know how Tiger feels. Becasue I am the Tiger of Professordom. I go to the gym on campus and hords of undergrads come up to me screaming, "Dr. Thomas, Dr. Thomas, you are my hero." And I say "Hey I'm trying to pump some iron here." and they are screaming "you are my favorite professor, my favorite. I love you." and I say "you blankety-blank students, leave me alone can't you see I'm concentrating."

I try to ignore them as I am trying to bench press 90 pounds. But it's impossible.

This just absolutely killed me. I'm dying! Dr. Thomas, I see why you get so much attention.

[weezie]

Actually glad you mentioned Phil b/c as you will see from the link - it's all a matter of perspective...

http://golf.about.com/b/2006/01/26/p...-hated-man.htm

Oh ouch, you got me Supa. I'm hurt, woman down.
My bad. Go get'em Tiger!

[kmspeaks]

WHEN was the last time you heard of civilians being able to watch ANY other type of athlete PRACTICE? And then actually having access to them? It's a rare thing indeed.

NFL teams often have training camp practices that are open to the public. You could also consider baseball spring training games to be the equivalent of a PGA practice round.

I'm not saying Tiger's a bad guy or that I agree with Reily's column, I don't. At the same time I don't think it's acceptable for a professional athlete in any sport to just totally ignore a group of kids at an event. Does he have to stop and sign every hat, ball and program? Of course not. Should he at least say hey and give them a smile and maybe a high five as he walks by? I think so.

[DevilAlumna]

"It's a well-known fact that if a camera's not on him, he treats old people and children like dirt."

"And dogs."

[SupaDave]

"It's a well-known fact that if a camera's not on him, he treats old people and children like dirt."

"And dogs."

Well as it turns out it seems that the sportsman in Woods wasn't quite so appreciated by the PGA.

http://sports.yahoo.com/golf/pga/new...v=ap&type=lgns

[OZZIE4DUKE]

Well as it turns out it seems that the sportsman in Woods wasn't quite so appreciated by the PGA.

http://sports.yahoo.com/golf/pga/new...v=ap&type=lgns

1. I think Tiger was right in his criticism, and was a gracious thing to say in backing his beaten opponent.
2. He can afford the fine, whatever it is
3. Did you notice Tiger's behavior on 14 when he hit the bad shot out of the fairway trap? He must have read this thread. While disappointed, he didn't slam his club down or utter any F-bombs. At least not while on camera.

[JasonEvans]

What kind of fine would it take to get Tiger's attention? $2 million? 5 million? 10 million?

I was bummed that Harrington blew up as it looked like we were in for a dramatic final few holes. Ahh well.

--Jason "early odds on the PGA-- Tiger 3/2, Paddy 20-1, Phil 22-1, Westwood 28-1, Stricker 33-1... I wonder if you could get an even bet on Tiger versus the field?" Evans

[rthomas]

What kind of fine would it take to get Tiger's attention? $2 million? 5 million? 10 million?

I was bummed that Harrington blew up as it looked like we were in for a dramatic final few holes. Ahh well.

--Jason "early odds on the PGA-- Tiger 3/2, Paddy 20-1, Phil 22-1, Westwood 28-1, Stricker 33-1... I wonder if you could get an even bet on Tiger versus the field?" Evans

Harrington should pay the fine for Tiger verbalizing what Harrington was thinking. But what a shot by Tiger on 16. Wow.

The odds of winning 3 PGA tournaments in a row has to be really low.

[JasonEvans]

The odds of winning 3 PGA tournaments in a row has to be really low.

Tiger has previous streaks of 7, 6, and 5 in the past. I am not sure how many times he has won 3 in a row, but "the odds" sorta go out the window when he is involved. All previous metrics no longer apply when Tiger is the one attempting the difficult feat.

--Jason "here is a list of all win streaks of 4 or more" Evans

[mr. synellinden]

Tiger has previous streaks of 7, 6, and 5 in the past. I am not sure how many times he has won 3 in a row, but "the odds" sorta go out the window when he is involved. All previous metrics no longer apply when Tiger is the one attempting the difficult feat.

--Jason "here is a list of all win streaks of 4 or more" Evans

Actually, with those three streaks, I wonder how many times Tiger has won two in a row and not won the following week? Or to put it another way, is his winning percentage in a tournament directly after winning 2 in a row any different than overall? My bet is that his winning percentage is higher after two in a row than overall.

[Blue in the Face]

There wasn't actually any fine.

http://sports.yahoo.com/golf/pga/new...v=ap&type=lgns

[SupaDave]

There wasn't actually any fine.

http://sports.yahoo.com/golf/pga/new...v=ap&type=lgns

Cant wait for the day where I can tell my bosses something like this...

"Woods said. “That was an erroneous report.”

Like, that's me in the office, looking at a VP like "you need to talk to me later about this..."