Tiger Woods is Back for Real This Time…. See for Yourself.

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We don’t dip national too often here at Minnesota Sports Fan. There’s just too much going on around Minnesota for us to hit much on the big stories, nationally. As we grow, that will likely change.

However, there are some sports stories, no matter where they come from, that need attention ASAP. This is definitely one of those times.

Tiger Woods is making another comeback. STOP. Don’t click out. I know it’s tempting. We’ve heard this 3328 times, just to see Tiger play below-average, at best; oftentimes dropping out of the tournament all-together either before or during play. But this time seems different. Here’s why:

Let’s quickly look at how we got here, from a place where Tiger Woods was the greatest athlete in the world… as a golfer.

When Tiger was dominating everyone on the golf course, and just a look from him would drop women’s panties and golfers’ confidence, Woods was a KILLER. He was better than you, and he knew it. Also, you knew it, I knew it, your brother/sister in-law knew it, mother, father, …… you get it. Tiger was better than everyone on the planet and it wasn’t even close. You would be checking scores on weekends just to see how far ahead he was.

His attitude back then was also that of a KILLER. In 2006, before his father died and before he was the newest superstar caught up in scandal, Tiger Woods did an interview with Ed Bradley for 60 Minutes. All you need is 30-60 seconds of part 1 to see what I’m talking about. He doesn’t even need to say what he’s saying to give away his confidence. YOU CAN SEE IT IN HIS FACE AND CONSTANTS SMIRK. It says ‘I’m untouchable.’ We all would come to find out that he was not untouchable. not even close. If you are having issues remembering the Tiger I’m talking about, just watch these. I was in love.

 

When this was the Tiger Woods everyone knew, I was the perfect age for fandom. Life was good back then, as a young Minnesota sports fan. I was 8-15 years old (1998-2005), the Vikings were running “Three Deep” and the Gophers 1997 banner was still hanging. Minnesota hadn’t won anything since ‘91 (which I didn’t remember) but with the teams we put out every year, it was just a matter of time before Minnesota won something again, right? WRONG. My dad was always right. I was just a dumb kid. (Don’t freak out. My dad loved me and we have a great relationship.)

However, golf wasn’t something I was used to watching back then. it was a niche sport. But, all of a sudden, this American 20-something is running EVERYONE on the golf course. And doing it with ease. As they talk about in these interviews, HIS PEERS WERE SCARED OF HIM. People, this isn’t an opinion. It’s fact. I’m so glad I found this interview because it shows everything I am saying in 2 simple videos, right before the spiral occurred. I immediately needed to get me a set of golf clubs so I could fist pump like Tiger. I was glued to the TV, watching golf? EVERY Sunday. I was going to school and talking about Tiger. Look at me right now… This is the first thing I’ve written, outside of Minnesota sports, in months. I was in love. I may still be. And, I wasn’t/am not the only one.

But then, in one bad turn, all of that disappeared. Tiger was human. And we all found that out very quickly.

 

He never came back. He was never the same. That killer was gone. And injuries piled up fast. The back injuries were the most frustrating. Tiger was changing his swing and swing coaches. He was changing caddies and just about everything else in his life.

We kept on waiting for his comeback… He was so dominant before that once he got things back in order, he would be back right? Other stars had scandals and came back from them.. So we waited. But, it never happened. And, that killer instinct… that confidence… it seemed to be gone.

 

And then, as everyone is wondering when Tiger will make his next come back, from his latest injury… this happens:

 

*DISCLAIMER*: What follows is strictly my opinion:

Tiger Woods is likely addicted to opiates. It shouldn’t be that surprising, if we think about it. With the continued back pain, repeated surgeries, and immense pressure Tiger succumbed to what so many other HUMANS have. That search for a fairy-land of no worries and no pain.

The world of prescription medication.

When Tiger was pulled over and arrested for DWI, there was NO alcohol in his system. But… well.. you watched the video. It dawned on me when I watched that video. That killer instinct is hard to rid yourself of but opiates are one thing that will do it (again: my opinion). Afterward, he was admitted into a rehab facility to better deal with the drugs he was taking. It’s a little surprising to me how little coverage this the drugs got. Nice work by he and his spin team.

My thoughts on Tiger’s demise only strengthened when I saw him interacting with the media, as he gets ready for another comeback that starts tomorrow. It’s like the old Tiger mind is slithering back into the now-older Tiger body.

Read/listen to some of the quotes from Tiger over the last couple days. If the first problem was the back pain, which he thinks the most recent surgery fixed, and the possible background problem was the prescription drugs, and he now has that under control…. oh shit… watch out PGA. The short version of this press conference, with some of the best quotes, is first. You can watch the full thing below that.

But hey… words are just words, right? Ha… Here is Tiger through 2 rounds this weekend. This tournament has 18 of the best players in the world. He isn’t even playing that well right now. Obviously plenty of rust to be knocked off.

Golf just became relevant again.

Since we’ve already had 47 videos in this article. Why not one more of the “YouTube Golfer”

 

MSF Boss Man
Minnesota Sports Fan
MinnesotaSportsFan.com @RealMNSportsFan

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