Tiger Woods at the Barclays: Inside the Ropes

PARAMUS, NJ - It’s been exactly a year since the last time I followed Tiger Woods from inside the ropes, and much has changed since that time.

Adoration and hero worship has turned into encouragement and support.

Outside the ropes conversations about Woods’ chip-in on the 16th hole at Augusta in 2005 or his putt on the 72nd hole of the 2008 U.S. Open have now turned into comedic speculation about what Manhattan nightclub he hit up last night and how many hours of sleep he got before his 12:30pm tee time.

But Woods doesn’t hear much of what is communicated by means of a whisper amongst the patrons.  Perhaps it’s just human nature to tell a joke about Woods’ personal life to your buddy while moments later yelling “Let’s go Tiger!” at the top of your lungs…at least that seems to be the case at The Barclays.

But aside from those that had tipped a few too many plastic Miller Light bottles, most people seemed to be looking for Woods to succeed.

People’s faces lit up as Woods approached a tee box or green that they’d been standing next to for an hour just to catch a glimpse of the 14-time major champion.

Anticipation would build as he lined up a put or discussed the wind direction with Steve Williams.

Heads would quickly turn in unison as he struck a tee shot or rolled a putt.  

Roars would follow the good shots and disappointment would follow the bad ones.

Many have questioned why the galleries have been so supportive of Woods this season.  Most thought that the galleries would do everything short of throwing tomatoes at him as he attempted to hit a tee shot.

But the answer to that question became quite clear to me this afternoon in Paramus, NJ.  

Aside from the .01% of the population that happen to be fighter pilots, lion tamers, or NASCAR drivers, people see ordinary every single day of their lives.

Hurt, failure, and disappointment is a common occurrence in the lives of many.

No one in their right mind is going to pay good money to spend a Saturday afternoon watching more failure and disappointment, or even worse, the dreaded “ordinary.”  

Although golf is on television every weekend, the tour moves from town to town like a travelling circus.  The average golf fan will get to see Woods play a precious few times during the course of their lives, and in a flash, Woods will exist only in history books and Golf Channel re-runs.

When they do see Woods they want to see him hit 300+ yard drives, curve shots around trees, and sink 20-foot putts like their tap-ins.  

They don’t want to see him pull tee shots out of bounds and miss every mid-range putt he sees.

Heck, we can see that any time we want at the local muni.

There’s a simple explanation as to why the atmosphere surrounding Woods this afternoon at Ridgewood Country Club was one of encouragement, support, and hope rather than scorn—because the tens of thousands that came out to watch Tiger Woods all came for one thing—to see greatness.