Tiger Woods Has a Lot of Work to Do On and Off the Golf Course

Needless to say, our opinion of Tiger Woods as a person has been severely damaged, and he has a very long way to go in order to repair it, if that’s even possible.

In terms of Tiger Woods as a golfer, he also has a very long way to go to repair his image and demonstrate that he has changed his ways.

Go to a PGA Tour event and follow Woods for 18 holes, and you will see several sides to the world’s No. 1 golfer, which was obviously the case off the course as well.

You will see an unbelievably talented and intelligent golfer.

You will see a level of power, precision, and course management that has not been seen since Jack Nicklaus was walking fairways with his flowing blond mane while wearing checkered pants that appeared to have come right out of Austin Powers' wardrobe.

However, you will also see clubs thrown; you will hear loud expletives; you will see a man that can look like a five-year-old child pouting on the side of the green after a missed birdie putt; and you will see a man that makes very little time for his fans.

Show up at 7 a.m. on a Tuesday to watch Woods during a practice round, and you will often see him make a conscious effort to ignore children whose parents had to take the day off work and wake up at 5 a.m. just to give their children a chance at seeing their idol up close and personal.

Obviously there are demands on Woods’ time, and he cannot sit around for hours and sign autographs; that’s a given.

But he can acknowledge fans every now and again—at least during practice rounds and pro-ams—and he can take at least a few minutes to sign autographs or speak with his fans after his round.

Phil Mickelson may or may not be the person he appears to be when in public.

However, Mickelson does acknowledge his fans and will often stand around and sign autographs for an hour after his round.

At the 2009 U.S. Open, Mickelson’s wife’s health was uncertain, and he was attempting to prepare for the one major championship he wanted to win more than any other. Yet Mickelson stood and signed autographs for an hour and a half after his Wednesday afternoon practice round at Bethpage.

Whether you like Mickelson or not, or think he’s genuine or not, he does take time out of his day for the fans, which is something that can make a six-year-old child’s year.

Woods knows that he needs to change his ways on the golf course. He said as much while reading his carefully constructed speech aloud on Friday morning.

Like his off-the-course problems, we will just have to wait and see whether or not he truly is committed to changing his ways. 

But one thing is for certain: Woods' image has been severely damaged, and those people who used to watch him throw clubs, curse, ignore fans, and just chalk it up to Tiger being Tiger will now have a much lower threshold for his antics.

Don’t be surprised to hear some heckling when Woods hits a bad shot and tosses his club, or hear a “Jerk!” yelled out at him when he completely ignores a young child holding out a pen and a Nike cap at 7 a.m. on a Tuesday morning.

And there’s nothing Woods or his “enforcer” Steve Williams can do about it.

There’s only one way for Woods to demonstrate that he’s changed on the golf course, and that’s to begin respecting his fans and the game itself a lot more than he has in the past.

Let’s wait and see...