The good people of County Limerick and beyond turned out in force for two days at stately Adare Manor — there were upwards of 30,000, closer to 35,000 and they all came to see the only active player in the world of golf with 15 major championships and 82 PGA Tour wins.
They came to see Tiger Woods — up close and personal. For many, it was probably the first time they laid eyes on him and for most, probably the last. Tiger Woods simply won’t be seen that often as the sun begins to set on his brilliant career.
For two days at the J.P. McManus Pro-Am, Tiger endured endless amounts of people chatting him up. He couldn’t even hit a few pitch shots before his Monday tee time — LPGA winner Leona Maguire was chatting him up, she was giddy and doing most of the talking. Tiger politely nodded as she rambled on, waiting for her to arrive at her ultimate goal — a picture with Woods.
Woods obliged. He was all smiles. He has grown more outgoing and personable in his old age. Everyone wanted that glimpse of him, a few words with him, anything they can tell the children and grandchildren about one distant day. His playing partners — three members of the multi-billionaire Smurfit family, talked his ears off and subjected him to everything you’d expect from a pack of high handicappers.
As for Tiger, amidst all the fuss and distractions, he rode 36-holes in a cart — it’s the only way many of the amateurs in the field could finish 36 holes. Tiger tallied an eagle, three scant birdies, 21 pars, 10 bogeys and a double. Rounds of 77-74 left him seven over for two rounds.
On Tuesday, Tiger was kind enough to hold a press conference for the gathered European media, for the most part.
Tiger was optimistic even though that limp was still clearly noticeable. The question he cannot answer is — How much more is left in Tiger’s tank?
“I don’t know. I really don’t,” he admitted. “If you asked me last year whether I would play golf again, all of my surgeons would have said no. But here I am playing major championships this year.”
He’s played in two this season — The Masters and the PGA, although he tapped out after three rounds at Southern Hills. Ahead, the Old Course and the 150th Open Championship await. The Old Course has long been a friend to Tiger. He completed the career Grand Slam there in 2000 and won another Claret Jug there in 2005.
But this post-crash, post-traumatic surgery Tiger Woods is on a pitch count.
“I will always be able to play golf, whether it’s this leg or someone else’s leg or false leg or different body pieces that have been placed or fused, I’ll always be able to play,” Tiger said. “Now if you say play at a championship level, well, that window is definitely not as long as I would like it to be.”
The huge Irish throng knew that, they knew that there is limited time to see Tiger Woods play in a championship, any championship, much less a major.
Tiger’s current playing goals include the four majors, the Genesis that benefits his foundation and his Hero World Challenge in the Bahamas. Anything more than those would be bonus time.
He had to pass on the U.S. Open, given how close it fell after the PGA at Southern Hills.
“The plan was to play the U.S. Open, but physically I was not able to do that. There’s no way physically I could have done that,” he said. “I had some issues with my leg and it would have put this tournament (The Open Championship) in jeopardy and so there’s no reason to do that.”
Tiger knows the landscape of the Old Course and it will be the easiest walk for him, easier than Augusta National or Southern Hills. This was the one he most looked forward to. The Old Course is all about proper lines and Tiger knows them by heart. Pick your line, hit your line, stay out of the pot bunkers. Tiger has excelled at that.
The recovery experience has changed him, it’s made his preparation process tougher, but Tiger never met a challenge he didn’t like.
“It’s been worth it. It’s been hard,” Woods said. “I’ve had some very difficult days and some days which moving off the couch is a hell of a task, and that’s just the way it is.
“I have my own two legs, which I tell you, I’m not going to take it for granted anymore, some people do. But people who have come close or lost a limb understand what I’m saying, but you have difficult days and also you have great days.”
So now it’s on to St. Andrews. Tiger will have plenty of time to prepare. Faithful caddie Joe LaCava went ahead and skipped the pro-am nonsense to walk the Old Course. Tiger’s week will depend on the weather. Chilly air is his enemy. It was in the high 50s and low 60s at Adare Manor. Tiger was layered up while Shane Lowry played in shirt-sleeves.
Time is a precious commodity for this Tiger.
Time simply is not on his side. It’s a lot tougher for him just to get to the first tee on day one.
A sad but stark fact of life for golf’s greatest and still somewhat active champion.
