Tiger Woods Leading at British Open

Tiger Woods, out of his long “slump,” appears back on track to chase down Jack Nicklaus for most career Majors victories as he starts this year’s British Open with a commanding lead. Amusingly, the AP spends most of the story talking about Nicklaus.

Tiger Woods Leading at British Open (AP)

Tiger Woods, an overwhelming favorite to capture his second British Open title, surged onto the top of the leaderboard early Thursday with three birdies on the first seven holes of the Old Course.

[….]

Five years ago, Woods failed to hit into a single bunker over four days on the Old Course. Not surprisingly, he set a major championship record at 19-under 269 and finished eight shots ahead of anyone else. “I should have seen in probably three or five bunkers, easily,” Woods recalled. “Just off the tee shots alone, it happened to hop over a bunker and catch a side and kick left or right of it. That happens. Fortunately for me, it was happening that week. I got lucky a few times.”

The way things were going, Woods’ 5-year-old record might be in jeopardy. He has emerged from the second major swing change of his career to reclaim his status as the world’s most feared player. Woods won the first major of the year, the Masters, and was runner-up to Michael Campbell at the U.S. Open three weeks ago.

Amazing. One wonders why someone absolutely dominating the game would keep radically rebuilding his swing, sacrificing the chance to win three or four majors during the process. He apparently knows what he’s doing.

FILED UNDER: Uncategorized,
James Joyner
About James Joyner
James Joyner is Professor and Department Head of Security Studies at Marine Corps University's Command and Staff College. He's a former Army officer and Desert Storm veteran. Views expressed here are his own. Follow James on Twitter @DrJJoyner.