Tiger wins vote of confidence from greats

Art Stricklin

Tiger Woods may be enduring the worst spell of his career for several years but he still commands the admiration of the great names of golf.

When Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer and Hale Irwin got together for a senior skins game in Hawaii last weekend, the talk was all of the young Woods's fantastic year in 2000.

"What Tiger did last year will be around for a long time," said Nicklaus of Woods's nine PGA Tour wins last year which included three major titles.

Player, too, was deeply impressed by the world number one. "I'll tell you what happened to me. I was on my ranch last year in South Africa, and that's where I go to get totally away from golf.

"I don't think it, play it or anything but last year I stayed up until two a.m. to watch Tiger in the PGA championship and I've never stayed up until two o'clock in the morning to watch any man play golf."

"He certainly does have an effect on people watching on TV," added Irwin. "I wish I had the same effect."

None of the veterans, who won more than 150 PGA Tour titles and dozens of major championships between them, sees Woods going off the boil for long, despite his poor start to 2001.

A FUNNY GAME

After last year's triumphs, the 25-year-old American finished only joint eighth in the Mercedes championship in Kapalua last month and was 13 strokes behind winner Mark Calcavecchia in joint fifth at the Phoenix Open last week - his biggest deficit since he joined the professional ranks in 1996.

Woods has now gone five PGA Tour events without winning in his worst spell since mid 1998 to early 1999.

"It's a fickle, very funny game at times," said Player. "Tiger's game is very solid but we all know there is no predicting golf."

But the South African firmly expects Woods to come back.

"Golf is a confidence game. It's all about confidence and Tiger oozes with confidence, more than anybody out there," Player said.

Nicklaus agreed. "He has a lot of confidence and a lot of will to win. I always wanted to do better than the year before and so does Tiger," said the American, who was Woods's boyhood hero.

Nicklaus, winner of an unmatched 18 majors, believes that Woods, who would hold all four golf majors if he wins the Masters in April, is going to have another great season.

A GREAT SEASON

"I always thought it was easier to come back after a good year on the Tour," said Nicklaus, who won seven PGA tournaments in both 1972 and 1973.

"I was always full of confidence after a great season and I would think Tiger is the same way. I would look forward to a new year because I would always think I could do better."

Nicklaus won at least one PGA event a year for 17 straight years. His last PGA Tour victory came in 1986 when he captured his sixth Masters title at the age of 46.

Palmer, who won eight times in 1960, five in 1961 and seven the following year, said the true test of a great golfer was their ability to recover from a setback in their career.

"I must have come back six, eight times in my career when the media said I was finished," said Palmer, now 71. "I admire Tiger for coming back after the first Masters to have a great year last year."

Three-times U.S. Open champion Irwin, the youngest of the quartet at 55 and the winner in Hawaii, offered Woods a little advice.

"Sometimes it's harder to get going at the beginning of the year because after a great season you have to stop, take a breath and start again at zero. That's what Tiger is doing right now."