What was it like watching Tiger in his prime?

[TSauer]

I did not get into golf until 2015, so I wasn’t fortunate enough to witness the dominance of his earlier years.

To those of you who have been around golf ever since Tiger was a cub, what was it like watching him in his prime? 

 

Edited June 15 by TSauer

[RetiredBoomer]

David Feherty called Tiger a "freak" on television, and nobody argued

The potential to do what he did---the requisite physical attributes---
were a freakish accident of birth that couldn't be acquired any other way; 
but those attributes were merely the tools in his toolbox.

He himself was responsible for learning how to use and take care of the tools.
He did a spectacular job with the former; the latter not so much.
He tried too hard when he didn't need to.

In his prime, Tiger went into the majors
as even money or shorter
against the entire rest of the field.

That's mind boggling.

 

[revkev]

If you did not see them Tiger and Jack were so much better than anyone else that you ever saw play - verses the game at the time - that it’s nearly impossible to explain because everyone that came after copied them. 
 

Both were ridiculously long compared to their peers, Jack hardly ever missed greens and was an incredible putter with a tournament on the line. Tiger one upped him by having a great short game to go along with tremendous ball striking. The first half of his career he was also a great drive - he still one even after he got crooked off there because he could hit any shot, from anywhere at any time. 
 

Scotty Shefflers play the past year and a half is incredible but it’s nothing like those guys because he’s just doing what others do more consistently and efficiently. Tiger and Jack both did things others had never seen before including the guys they were playing against. 
 

I have to put in my Jack plug - he was only outside the top 10 5 times in the 40 majors in the 70’s. 

Edited June 15 by revkev

[TSauer]

On 6/15/2024 at 11:30 AM, revkev said:

If you did not see them Tiger and Jack were so much better than anyone else that you ever saw play - verses the game at the time - that it’s nearly impossible to explain because everyone that came after copied them. 
 

Both were ridiculously long compared to their peers, Jack hardly ever missed greens and was an incredible putter with a tournament on the line. Tiger one upped him by having a great short game to go along with tremendous ball striking. The first half of his career he was also a great drive - he still one even after he got crooked off there because he could hit any shot, from anywhere at any time. 
 

Scotty Shefflers play the past year and a half is incredible but it’s nothing like those guys because he’s just doing what others do more consistently and efficiently. Tiger and Jack both did things others had never seen before including the guys they were playing against. 
 

I have to put in my Jack plug - he was only outside the top 10 5 times in the 40 majors in the 70’s. 

This is an incredible illustration. It’s like he brought the game to a whole new level, it must have been such an exciting thing to watch. 

[Haro]

was talking to my work mate about this   We both saw him in tournaments in his prime 

My college saw him when he was amateur playing in the UK and how impressed  was  Tiger  was 30-40 yards past everyone else  

I  followed him live at the Canadian Open  in 2000  witness the 200 yard 6I  landed over a water softly onto  the green     Driver distance he  was past way everyone in the field with backspin  !  Ball actually kicked backward when it landed on  the fairway 

He was doing stuff no one else could do then   

He was using small head metal driver back then too to drive those distances 

A whole new generation of golfer wanted to be like Tiger  and develop a power game 

Now a day 6 iron 200 yards is typical for pros 

i think he could have been more  dominant If the driver technology didnt advance to 460cc  and everyone was able to develop distance and catch up to Tiger 

Edited June 17 by Haro

[MissionMan]

The way Tiger's playing was explained to me; one of the top pros said he played against Tiger, had the best tournament of his life, and Tiger won by 15 strokes. That was the moment he realised how much better he was than anyone else.

[NM01]

7 hours ago, TSauer said:

This is an incredible illustration. It’s like he brought the game to a whole new level, it must have been such an exciting thing to watch. 

The crowds were 10 people deep if not more on every hole.

Tiger was a master with the club in his hand. He had the ability to hit shots that nobody else could. Shots out of thick rough, fairway bunkers. It was unthinkable. He did change the game. He caused courses to add length in an effort to tame him and it didn’t work and in a way backfired because a large amount of golfers started training in the gym and to get longer. It made the game even harder for the shorter hitters.

You couldn’t go to a golf course on the weekend and not see people in black and red. I saw more guys in black pants in the summer time than I had ever seen before.

He drew people to the game

[Philpug]

Every player since owes a part of the earning to Tiger, he brought the purses way up.

IMO, Stevie Williams was Tigers best caddie. He helped keep him in check and focused, he was a body guard on the course. An extremely underrated part of Tigers success. Stevie earned more than many tour players. 

When he was number 1, there was a bigger gap between him and number 2 than between number 2 and 100

Two words ... "Tiger Slam", he held all four majors ... at once. Never been done before, very well will never be done again. 

[RetiredBoomer]

1 hour ago, Philpug said:

Every player since owes a part of the earning to Tiger, he brought the purses way up.

IMO, Stevie Williams was Tigers best caddie. He helped keep him in check and focused, he was a body guard on the course. An extremely underrated part of Tigers success. Stevie earned more than many tour players. 

When he was number 1, there was a bigger gap between him and number 2 than between number 2 and 100

Two words ... "Tiger Slam", he held all four majors ... at once. Never been done before, very well will never be done again. 

I'm surprised that Steve Williams was never arrested and dragged off the course.
His abuse of patrons in the gallery might have literally gotten him a cap behind the year at our club. (Probably just one of the reason we never got a tour event.)

[Hacker60521]

@TSauer I was just thinking about this over the past few days when Tiger didn’t make the cut for the past couple of tournaments. It’s hard to describe Tiger other than he was a phenom on the golf course. I had more fun watching him create some amazing shot to get out of trouble or eke out a tight win. You just knew on Sundays he’d play at least -2 or -3. So if you were in the lead, you just knew Tiger would start coming back up. 
 

In many ways to me he was the Michael Jordan of golf. Just another level 

[revkev]

8 hours ago, Haro said:

was talking to my work mate about this   We both saw him in tournaments in his prime 

My college saw him when he was amateur playing in the UK and how impressed  was  Tiger  was 30-40 yards past everyone else  

I  followed him live at the Canadian Open  in 2000  witness the 200 yard 6I  landed over a water softly onto  the green     Driver distance he  was past way everyone in the field with backspin  !  Ball actually kicked backward when it landed on  the fairway 

He was doing stuff no one else could do then   

He was using small head metal driver back then too to drive those distances 

A whole new generation of golfer wanted to be like Tiger  and develop a power game 

Now a day 6 iron 200 yards is typical for pros 

i think he could have been more  dominant If the driver technology didnt advance to 460cc  and everyone was able to develop distance and catch up to Tiger 

These things are so true - but I really wish we would not leave Jack out of this equation. What was true of Tiger was true of Jack. Nate Silver did an analysis of televised golf throughout history - the only two golfers that mattered for TV ratings were Jack and Tiger - if they were in the top 10 going into a Sunday round, ratings went up significantly / that was not true of Arnie btw - only Jack and Tiger 

Copy cats come along fairly quickly so physically fit golfers came down the pick about 10 years after Tiger so you started to see guys hit it as far as him at about that time - he still won a lot because he could do so many things well. At the start though he was in a totally different league from anyone else. I saw him play live a few times - it was jaw dropping - I saw Jack too but by then he was older - he had a hall of fame career after turning 40 - 3 majors and a nice assortment of other victories - that’s when his career was on the downswing. 

[NM01]

5 minutes ago, revkev said:

These things are so true - but I really wish we would not leave Jack out of this equation. What was true of Tiger was true of Jack. Nate Silver did an analysis of televised golf throughout history - the only two golfers that mattered for TV ratings were Jack and Tiger - if they were in the top 10 going into a Sunday round, ratings went up significantly / that was not true of Arnie btw - only Jack and Tiger 

Copy cats come along fairly quickly so physically fit golfers came down the pick about 10 years after Tiger so you started to see guys hit it as far as him at about that time - he still won a lot because he could do so many things well. At the start though he was in a totally different league from anyone else. I saw him play live a few times - it was jaw dropping - I saw Jack too but by then he was older - he had a hall of fame career after turning 40 - 3 majors and a nice assortment of other victories - that’s when his career was on the downswing. 

Yes Jack had an influence similar to Tiger on golf but did Jack have the same impact on getting more golfers to play the game?

I don’t doubt he had some influence on growth but I would be surprised if it was close to tigers impact on growth. Tiger has a multicultural impact on the game. 

[revkev]

58 minutes ago, RickyBobby_PR said:

Yes Jack had an influence similar to Tiger on golf but did Jack have the same impact on getting more golfers to play the game?

I don’t doubt he had some influence on growth but I would be surprised if it was close to tigers impact on growth. Tiger has a multicultural impact on the game. 

He did not - 

I may be one of the rare people who loved Jack and absolutely enjoyed everything that Tiger brought to the game - Jack was a huge building block along the way to Tiger though - in regards to making it possible for a golfer to be so influential. 

[chisag]

On 6/15/2024 at 9:30 AM, revkev said:

because he could hit any shot, from anywhere at any time. 

 

... Lots we can say about his will to win, his dominance over others but that statement Rev is short, sweet and perfectly stated. At any given moment Tiger could hit the shot required whether that was feathering a fade/draw to a back left/right pin or hitting a 60yd slice/hook around a tree. His skill with a golf club in his hand was unparalleled. He had power, finesse, a killer short game and his ability to make putts when absolutely needed over and over again set him apart from everyone else. 

[Philpug]

One of my favorite stories about Tiger was the Braves Big 3, Glaven, Smotlz and Maddox, all scratch golfers, played best ball against Tiger and Tiger still beat them. 

Tiger dominated the competition and the sport as very few have ... in any sport. It was said the only worse thing than having Tiger in front of you was having him (and his galleries) behind you. For a while, the players were reovled to thinking they are playing for second place. Which it got to the point where second place money was better than first place money pre-Tiger. 

As far as what was it like watching Tiger in his prime? Special. 

 

[NM01]

2 hours ago, revkev said:

He did not - 

I may be one of the rare people who loved Jack and absolutely enjoyed everything that Tiger brought to the game - Jack was a huge building block along the way to Tiger though - in regards to making it possible for a golfer to be so influential. 

Or was it arnold palmer who made it possible for Jack and all those after him?

 

[revkev]

1 hour ago, RickyBobby_PR said:

Or was it arnold palmer who made it possible for Jack and all those after him?

 

It really depends upon what we are talking about - if it’s golf’s popularity - definitely - if it’s advancing the level of play it’s not so much - Arnie was a great player but not so great that the entire way the game is played changed because of him. 
 

I do think we have 2 things going at once in this thread maybe three. There’s out and out on course talent - Jack and Tiger both were completely different from anything anyone had ever seen prior and everyone knew the game would never be the same again.  
 

Then there’s golf’s popularity as a spectator sport but as as a participatory one. The big money spectator wise is TV - although people like to credit Arnie for that the numbers don’t bear them out at least according to the Silver study.  However Arnie definitely made golf more accessible for working class people - he was their guy, it experienced a playing boom because of him. 
 

Tiger checked all three boxes 

[NM01]

On 6/17/2024 at 5:06 PM, revkev said:

It really depends upon what we are talking about - if it’s golf’s popularity - definitely - if it’s advancing the level of play it’s not so much - Arnie was a great player but not so great that the entire way the game is played changed because of him. 
 

I do think we have 2 things going at once in this thread maybe three. There’s out and out on course talent - Jack and Tiger both were completely different from anything anyone had ever seen prior and everyone knew the game would never be the same again.  
 

Then there’s golf’s popularity as a spectator sport but as as a participatory one. The big money spectator wise is TV - although people like to credit Arnie for that the numbers don’t bear them out at least according to the Silver study.  However Arnie definitely made golf more accessible for working class people - he was their guy, it experienced a playing boom because of him. 
 

Tiger checked all three boxes 

Arnie is probably responsible for the marketing/advertising that Jack was able to take advantage of and of course which led to more of it over time for golfers and then Tiger blew the doors off it when it came to a golfer.

Jack probably had a bigger influence on growing the game than Arnie but it pales in comparison to what Tiger did for bringing people onto the game whether as a casual fan or on the course. 
 

Tigers accomplishments on the course depending on how you look at it put him as the GOAT. Some will say look at majors or runner up finishes in majors. Some will say look at total wins, compare the strength of fields during the eras. The totality of what Tiger did on the course from his skills, his distance (btw he’s still hitting 180 ball speed despite the age and injuries), the mental aspect and how it affected those playing in his group and those on the course. Along with the whole Tiger proofing courses and that combined with his distance gor better athletes playing golf and got current pros to hit the gym.

To bring it back on topic, watching Tiger was watching history in the making everytime he played. It was watching a guy hit shots nearly every golfer wouldn’t consider or couldn’t pull off. It was watching the game change for the better. He has some records that will probably never be broken 

[revkev]

I would certainly agree that there was more depth in Tigers Day - if you check the records though Jack had more to deal with at the top of his fields - it’s really parsing and drilling way down to say who is better in regards to play.  
 

Of late I’m satisfied with Tiger being the logical evolution to Jack in regards to golfing skills. Both completely changed the sport.

 

Tiger was the much bigger deal outside of the professional ranks. No argument there what so ever. 
 

And in the end I’m very thankful to have watched his career unfold both on TV and live on a number of occasions - I even got to see Tiger play in a US Open as a college kid - at Oakland Hills. He had made the cut but was in an early group on Sunday. We followed him for some holes - he was so much longer than anyone else that it wasn’t even funny - you could see the train a coming for certain. 

[RetiredBoomer]

1 minute ago, revkev said:

 

Tiger was the much bigger deal outside of the professional ranks. No argument there what so ever. 
 

 

Tiger won the US Amateur THREE consecutive times and the Junior Amateur three times before that!   My regret is that he never played in the R&A Amateur to become the only player to win all four of the Bobby Jones majors plus the Masters and the PGA.

 

[chisag]

3 hours ago, revkev said:

I would certainly agree that there was more depth in Tigers Day - if you check the records though Jack had more to deal with at the top of his fields - it’s really parsing and drilling way down to say who is better in regards to play.

 

... I would make the argument that persimmon woods and balata balls took much more skill to play in competition and separated the best from the average tour pro. That said I do think if Tiger had played his entire career with persimmon/balata he may have separated himself from others even more. With the modern ball and forgiving 460cc heads that reduce spin and launch high, anyone can win any week. You have to wonder if all the players in Jacks prime would have played with modern equipment, he and the elite at that time would have been challenged more by the rank and file in any given week. 

... I won't get into a hypothetical Jack vs Tiger in their primes but I think this sums up a healthy Tiger and his separation from everyone else:

"At Pebble Beach in California, Woods won by 15 strokes, a record-shattering margin that no has come close to matching in any major. On this date in 2000, Tiger Woods wins the 100th U.S. Open by 15 strokes, the largest margin of victory in any major championship".

[GolfSpy_KFT]

@TSauer this is such a great thread idea. I, too, was not big enough into golf when Prime Tiger was a thing, so all I have to go off of are the incredible highlights of him torching fields and hitting unbelievable shots. I can't imagine how cool and awe inspiring it was as it was happening live. 

[StrokerAce]

funny this should appear. I saw something online today and the question was:
which was longer: 
1) Tiger being ranked number in the world
2) Jordan's career with the Bulls

Everyone guessed Jordan and they were wrong...but it was close. 
He set a record that is so far out there I don't ever see it being broken.
TW was ranked number 1 in the world for 13 years and some number of weeks. (Jordan played for the Bulls for 12 years and some weeks)

I remember when the question going into a tournament was:
Tiger or 'the field' ... 
Meaning do you think anyone has a chance to beat him. That's when you knew you were watching something special.

He had the most incredible mental fortitude around the golf course that was ever seen. He was *never* out of it and if you had the lead on the back 9 and he was close he knew you would succumb to the pressure and crash. "Tiger is lurking" was a phrase that you didn't want to hear.

It was like Mike Tyson when he was a young heavyweight. There just wasn't anything close to him. Sad that his body didn't hold up for long. 

 

All of that being said I think Jack is the best player to ever play the game due to his longevity and unparalleled success....

[TJ Hall]

Tiger definitely moved the needle.  Watch more golf now as I’m older and at a different place in life, but watching Tiger on tv was exciting.  He changed the game drastically…remember Tiger-proofing courses?

Feel like he has influenced the current generation of golfers and showed golf is a sport and fitness matters.

[Preeway]

I remember seeing and reading about Tiger when I was in high school. Everything about him seemed surreal. Almost mythical to a 14-15 year old. If anyone remembers Casey Martin (golfer with a leg disability back in the 90s), I played with him in high school and he eventually went on to play at Stanford with Tiger. The stories he would share when he came back were crazy. 

When I was a kid and watching golf in the Nicklaus era, there were lots of faces to watch and root for in Sunday. I used get enamored with Chi Chi Rodriguez and Craig (the Walrus) Stadler. But once Tiger joined the tour there was only one guy to watch. Sundays were always about watching if anyone could catch Tiger. And it never got boring when he would win by double digits. It’s one reason I feel it’s unfair to criticize this years Masters just because Scotty was winning by a handful of strokes. That never happened when Tiger did it. 

[GolfSpy_BEN]

Tiger, in his prime, was magical. Every tournament he was in, was must see TV, often because he would pull off shots that other tour players couldn’t. Very similar to watching Michael Jordan play basketball. Just the walking personification of excellence. What a time to be alive…

[Michael.Sandoval33]

I actually did watch a good amount of 2,000's TW. Growing up in California, Tiger was BIG out here. I think one of my favorite memories was with my family at the Del Mar Fair in San Diego. I don't remember the exact tournament that it was, but almost everybody at the fair was inside somewhere that had a TV to watch Tiger win. It was a spectacle and easily outshined the fair that day.

[Shankster]

I started playing in 1997, right after Tiger won the Masters.  Honestly, I didn’t watch a whole lot of golf then besides what was on TV in the clubhouse where I worked.  Working at that little hole in the wall golf course I got to see the “Tiger Effect” first hand.  Tee sheets were booked solid from sun up to sun down.  Tourism to the area was significantly boosted, it was already a golf rich but it brought new people to the area… unfortunately most of them were from Ohio. (I’m kidding, kind of, Go Blue)(yes I’m kidding, I love everyone). 
 

the 2019 Masters was similar to the 1997 Masters for me, I watched both of them.  There was nothing like it, Tiger was my hero growing up, had the poster on my wall and everything.  I watched when he won the Open using 3 woods and irons off the tee, and when I got back into golf in 2013(ish) myself if he was playing I was watching.

Ive done my best to watch all of his win highlights on YouTube.  There isn’t much that could happen in golf that will have such an impact as Tiger had/has.  I don’t think it can be surpassed, or even matched by anyone.  Especially with the current split in golf, it is far from entertaining unless Bryson is sending it.  

 

Hopefully he can come back and win 5 more majors, and we know better than to count him out but time is getting limited.
 

 

[Erin B]

On 6/15/2024 at 9:51 AM, TSauer said:

I did not get into golf until 2015, so I wasn’t fortunate enough to witness the dominance of his earlier years.

To those of you who have been around golf ever since Tiger was a cub, what was it like watching him in his prime? 

 

Watching Tiger was awesome! He changed the game of golf for this era. He introduced fitness to today’s game. I remember commentators always intrigued by Tiger’s physical strength. I think that changed how golfers looked at themselves and their game. Watching him was like watching a tiger stalking his prey. Always knowing that Tiger was ready to pounce on the field. To me, Tiger was a trailblazer. I still like watching him play. 

[TSauer]

2 hours ago, StrokerAce said:

funny this should appear. I saw something online today and the question was:
which was longer: 
1) Tiger being ranked number in the world
2) Jordan's career with the Bulls

Everyone guessed Jordan and they were wrong...but it was close.

I would have probably guessed Jordan as well. That is actually a pretty wild statistic!