Tiger Woods: Strong Focus on New Swing Has Created a Horrible Putter

If it’s not one thing, it’s another for Tiger Woods’ golf game these days.

After enduring knee surgery and having to retool his entire swing, he got a new coach and spent countless hours in the offseason tweaking it.

While his long-distance game is certainly improving, his short game is now in shambles.

During Thursday’s match-play event at Dove Mountain in Marana, Ariz., Woods blew putt after putt and ended up losing to Nick Watney by a stroke, failing to make the third round for the third straight year.

Woods was facing a five-foot birdie on the 18th hole to force a playoff, and he couldn’t hit it. This is a putt that even your wife can hit at the Putt-Putt course. It's further proof that, mentally, his game is currently in shambles.

On the day, he missed three birdie putts within 10 feet over the last six holes. That is simply unacceptable for a player looking to make a comeback to the game’s elite.  

Ten days ago at the Pebble Beach National Pro-Am, he was within striking distance on Sunday and was paired alongside Phil Mickelson. It was supposed to be the first step in Woods’ 2012 comeback.

Instead, he missed five putts within five feet and was a ridiculous 11 strokes worse than Mickelson by the end of the day.

The decline in his short game has been going on ever since his horrific 2009 scandal. That year, he finished second on the PGA Tour in strokes gained putting. In 2010, he ranked 109th and was 45th in 2011 (via New York Times).

There is no question that putting is almost entirely mental. Once you miss a few, the mistakes weigh on you like a ton of bricks. Butch Harmon, a former coach of Woods, spoke with ESPN Radio recently about how far Tiger’s short game has fallen:

"

Tiger was the greatest pressure putter I’d ever seen since Jack Nicklaus. There was no doubt about that. He made every one he had to make every single time, and he just doesn’t do that anymore. I don’t put that down so much to mechanics as I do nerves.

"

The talk over the last two years has been all about altering his stroke on long-range shots. With the pressure he put on his knee, it was essential. That has been the main focus while a crumbling putting game was neglected.

Now it’s time for Woods to reevaluate what he practices. You can’t work on your mental game, but you can work on the repetition of putting.

It’s a motion he has completed millions of times in his career, with most of them falling into the cup.

Woods must realize that if he ever plans on winning another major, he has to ensure his short game is intact. Right now, he is neglecting it.

Add it to the growing list of issues, currently, with Tiger’s game.