So is Tiger Woods really the all dominating Terminator like cyborg, programmed to destroy all competitors on the golf course, or is he simply a human being? Is he just like you and me, with strengths and weaknesses and imrpovements he can make?
There is no disputing the fact that Tiger Woods has taken golf to yet another level. We know the more succesful we become the more we are targeted, both positively and negatively. Maintaining the top level in any sport not only requires that you try to maintain peak performance but mentally you can keep focused on retaining a positive and level headed attitude.Tiger's ability to never give up is perhaps unsurpassed by any of his counterparts and the will to win never seems to dwindle.
On a more technical note, it is all to easy to criticise him when things don't go so well. When he plays a bad shot or misses a three footer doesn't mean his career is over, as some would like to shout, it simply means the poor man is human afterall. As we all know we learn from our mistakes, and this is something Tiger Woods does exceptionally well.
Tiger's sometimes agressive swing with a driver and his passive touch with his wedge, is rather like a finely tuned engine, reving up to 8,000 R.P.M. then letting the motor idle means he can adjust the swing to suit the shot. Timing at the point of impact becomes critical in making a perfect stroke happen.
As a golf coach is is plain for me to see why sometimes his game comes off the boil and the few problems he has could easily be fixed, but I hugely admire and respect him just as I did with Jack Nicklaus, Nick Faldo and many, many others in their ability to keep the game at such a level that it makes others want to follow in their footsteps.
Jerry Newham is one of Europes finest golf coaches and director of the Sussex Golf Academy, one of the UK's most popular golf schools. Thousands of pupils from all over the country attend golf lessons and junior golf lessons at his academy in order to learn the ultimate way to swing a golf club. His method is also available on his new DVD, The Swingmakers, out now at Amazon.co.uk.
