Tiger Woods’ struggles have been well documented since he returned to the world of professional golf. But all of the successes he piled up before the sex scandal broke in December of last year have – unbelievably – kept him at the top of the world golf rankings. Officially he is still the best player in the world despite the fact that he hasn’t won a tournament in eight months. Well that could change at next week’s WGC-Bridgestone Invitational in Akron, Ohio. Tiger goes into that tournament with 9.97 pts, however a win by either Phil Mickelson (9.24 pts) or Lee Westwood (9.04 pts) would put them at the top of the heap.
So what can Tiger do to avoid what many will see as the icing on the cake in his fall from greatness?
Well, I’ve quietly been keeping this idea to my crazy self but was surprised to find someone reputable in the media who shares my theory. That someone is Sean Fay of Yahoo UK and “our” idea is that the Tiger needs to return to his sexual exploits. His sexploits.
He needs to get his mojo back. Needs to be himself.
Here’s what Fay says: “Has anyone thought that the reason why he may not be at his best is because he ain’t getting any in the bedroom? In modern sports the idea of what is, and what isn’t, the ‘professional’ thing to do has become so narrow that there is now no flexibility to account for different personalities.”
I couldn’t agree more. One of the interesting things about sport and life is that there is no specific formula that works and no specific set of behaviours that will make you a winner.
Mr. Fay points to the recent example of Sweden’s Carl Petterson winning the Canadian Open on a hangover. Apparently Petterson decided to have seven beers after concluding that he wasn’t going to make the cut after the second round of the tournament. When he surprisingly found himself still in the tournament, he was forced to play in far from his optimal physical condition. The result? He shot a 10-under-par 60 – the lowest score in the tournament’s 101-year history.
I think Fay could be onto to something here. A new theory about performance: be yourself, no matter what the rest of the world thinks.
Do you hear that Tiger?
You have carte blanche from us. At least two of us.
So…If that means chasing women, in order to chase titles; if that means landing ladies, in order to land trophies – then you go for it buddy. Otherwise you may soon find that you are no longer the best player in the world.
