On the occasion of his birthday, what's ahead for Tiger Woods?
It’s Tiger Woods’ birthday on Dec. 30, and while we’re not going to sing him “Happy Birthday” or get him a present or anything — dude didn’t invite us to his party, after all — we will take a look ahead at Woods’ options, both near- and long-term.
Bottom line: the fact that we’re talking about any kind of future at all for Woods on his birthday is nothing short of miraculous, from a sports perspective. Two years ago, the dude was done. And here he is, back inside the world top 15, winner of the Tour Championship, a near-winner at the PGA Championship, a betting favorite at the Masters, and once again a legitimate worldwide storyline not for who he was, but who he is right now.
Woods will play in all four majors, of course, and almost surely a few associated events like his own Genesis Open, the Arnold Palmer Invitational, and the Memorial. He’ll slate in more weeks off this year than last — he’s admitted that he overextended himself in 2018 — and he’ll almost surely go for a Mickelson-esque majors-or-bust angle.
He’ll have substantial competition, far tougher across the board than any he faced at any time in the first act of his career. As Brooks Koepka showed at the PGA Championship in August, today’s players don’t quail in terror at the sight of Woods in red and black, and if Woods is going to win another major, he’ll need to yank it out of someone’s hands. Koepka, Dustin Johnson, Justin Thomas, Jordan Spieth, Rory McIlroy, Jon Rahm, Bryson DeChambeau … any one of these cats or half a dozen others is capable of throwing out a tournament performance that could knock Woods back on his heels.
Plus, there’s the age factor. At 43, Woods isn’t just battling the course or other players, he’s battling his own body and the inexorable, undefeated march of time. The odds are not in his favor. And while comparing players across eras doesn’t really fly thanks to differences in conditioning — plus Woods’ own history of injury — it’s worth taking a high-level look at what a few notable names did after turning 43:
Jack Nicklaus: The gold standard, winning the Masters at age 46. Of course, he won after being written off as irrelevant and out of step with the game.
Arnold Palmer: Didn’t win another PGA Tour event, though did play his way onto a Ryder Cup team. His last major came eight years before turning 43.
Gary Player: Won the Masters at age 42, and very nearly won it again at age 48.
Ben Crenshaw: Won the Masters at age 43.
Vijay Singh: Won six PGA Tour events, but after placing in the top 10 in the first two majors after his 43rd birthday, never got that close to a major win again.
Ernie Els: Has not won a tournament since turning 43, and his best finish in a major is a lone top-10 finish, coming at the 2014 PGA Championship.
Phil Mickelson: Lost the U.S. Open at Merion on his 43rd birthday, but won the Open Championship a month later.
So, yeah. Not a lot of precedent for Woods to win big, and no precedent for him to win in bunches. But if anyone could do it, it’s Big Cat. It’ll be interesting to see where we are this time next year.
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Jay Busbee is a writer for Yahoo Sports. Contact him at jay.busbee@yahoo.com or find him on Twitter or on Facebook.
