Hole lot of trouble: Tiger Woods has changed his putter after tough year so far on the greens Tiger Woods, who has been receiving therapy since news of his extra-marital activities rocked sport, sounded like a man from Putters Anonymous on Tuesday.
'I've always experimented with other putters throughout the years, but I have never put one in play until now,' Woods said while revealing that he had changed clubs for this week's Open Championship at St Andrews.
Woods has discarded his constant companion of 11 years, the Scotty Cameron Newport, a club that won him 13 of his 14 major championships, 72 tournaments around the world and global official earnings of around £94million.
He has taken up with a flighty new blade, a Nike Method, with a reputation for fast living and compensating for the slow St Andrews greens. The couple have been seen out together on the Old Course ahead of a first official appearance in the opening round on Thursday.
It is not known whether Woods was ever one of those obsessive players who took his putter to bed, such is the importance of protecting the true breadwinner in a golfer's bag.
But he certainly remained more faithful to Scotty than he has been to his wife, Elin. Until now.
'It's one of those things where I've always struggled on slower greens,' Woods explained. 'I've always putted well on faster greens. This putter does come off faster. It rolls the ball better and rolls it faster. I've had to make very little adjustment in how hard I am hitting it compared to if I had my older putter.'
New model: Woods wields his new putterTiger Woods, who has been receiving therapy since news of his extra-marital activities rocked sport, sounded like a man from Putters Anonymous on Tuesday.
'I've always experimented with other putters throughout the years, but I have never put one in play until now,' Woods said while revealing that he had changed clubs for this week's Open Championship at St Andrews.
As he faced a packed press conference in Britain for the first time, an American questioner unwittingly asked of the putter switch: 'It must be like kicking a member of the family out or something?' My, how the assembled audience wanted to titter.
If anyone is doing the evicting, however, it is Elin, a fact seemingly acknowledged by Woods's refusal to make any reference to his Swedish wife. It was as if she did not exist as he played the father card in a game of unhappy families.
'All that really matters is that I have two beautiful kids and I am trying to be the best dad I can possibly be and that's the most important thing of all,' he said. 'They're the most important things in my life.' No mention of Mrs Woods, adding fuel to speculation that a $100million divorce is imminent.
The change of putter illustrates how desperate Woods has become in seeking to rediscover his form and dominance. And confirmation came from an unusual source, with faithful caddie Steve Williams breaking ranks.
'I'm used to seeing a lot of good golf,' Williams told PGATour.com. 'When you're not seeing that for an extended period of time and not seeing a lot of improvement, that's what's frustrating.
'The one part of Tiger's game that has been very sub-standard is his putting. He hasn't putted well in any of the events this year. The key to playing well at St Andrews is putting.'
A caddie might have been dismissed for such loose talk in the past. What price a Hollywood ending to an annus horribilis with Woods two-putting the last for a historic third win at St Andrews? From the Valley of Sin, of course.
source: dailymail
