Struggling Tiger ready for Arizona's desert winds
Source: Agencies |
February 24, 2011, Thursday
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Print Edition
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TIGER Woods returns to the Arizona desert this week for the first time in two years with renewed confidence in his revamped swing after being blown off course at the Dubai Desert Classic just two weeks ago.
Woods gave fans a glimpse of his imperious best with a six-under-par 66 in the second round of the European Tour event in Dubai to soar into contention but his new swing failed to hold up over the weekend in strong desert winds.
The former world No. 1 ended up seven strokes behind triumphant Spaniard Alvaro Quiros and the American has since worked hard to get his game back on track for this week's WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship.
"Game is progressing, no doubt," world No. 3 Woods told reporters on Tuesday before setting off for a practice round at Dove Mountain's Ritz-Carlton Golf Club.
"Had to work on a few things that we found were not right in Dubai, which was good. And it feels like we're heading in the right direction. Just have to work on it and solidify it."
Woods, who did not compete in last year's Match Play Championship because he was trying to repair his deteriorating marriage, said he had been "exposed" by the winds in Dubai.
"I was limited in the shot selections," the 14-time major champion added. "When the wind didn't blow, I went low. Sean (Foley) and I worked on that in the last week and that was good. We finally put it together."
In partnership with Canadian coach Foley, Woods has been working since August on the fourth swing change of his career.
"Now I just need to keep working on it and keep heading down this path," Woods said. "I know what it takes to get it done, but incorporating new movement patterns takes time.
"As more time goes on, the more balls I hit, hundreds of thousands of balls, millions of balls later, those movement patterns become natural."
Woods, a three-time winner of the Match Play Championship, has always enjoyed the challenge of the one-on-one format but he also knows that good golf is no guarantee of victory.
"I have seen guys, when we played at La Costa and had bad weather, win matches with 79s," he said, referring to the event's inaugural venue in Carlsbad, California. "There have been matches out here ... when it was calm and the guys were six or seven under par and they are going home.
Woods gave fans a glimpse of his imperious best with a six-under-par 66 in the second round of the European Tour event in Dubai to soar into contention but his new swing failed to hold up over the weekend in strong desert winds.
The former world No. 1 ended up seven strokes behind triumphant Spaniard Alvaro Quiros and the American has since worked hard to get his game back on track for this week's WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship.
"Game is progressing, no doubt," world No. 3 Woods told reporters on Tuesday before setting off for a practice round at Dove Mountain's Ritz-Carlton Golf Club.
"Had to work on a few things that we found were not right in Dubai, which was good. And it feels like we're heading in the right direction. Just have to work on it and solidify it."
Woods, who did not compete in last year's Match Play Championship because he was trying to repair his deteriorating marriage, said he had been "exposed" by the winds in Dubai.
"I was limited in the shot selections," the 14-time major champion added. "When the wind didn't blow, I went low. Sean (Foley) and I worked on that in the last week and that was good. We finally put it together."
In partnership with Canadian coach Foley, Woods has been working since August on the fourth swing change of his career.
"Now I just need to keep working on it and keep heading down this path," Woods said. "I know what it takes to get it done, but incorporating new movement patterns takes time.
"As more time goes on, the more balls I hit, hundreds of thousands of balls, millions of balls later, those movement patterns become natural."
Woods, a three-time winner of the Match Play Championship, has always enjoyed the challenge of the one-on-one format but he also knows that good golf is no guarantee of victory.
"I have seen guys, when we played at La Costa and had bad weather, win matches with 79s," he said, referring to the event's inaugural venue in Carlsbad, California. "There have been matches out here ... when it was calm and the guys were six or seven under par and they are going home.
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