Pin seeker: Woods practices on his swing with the help of caddie Steve WilliamsAmazing what happens when you get barbecued in the court of public opinion.
Seven days ago Tiger Woods was tediously evasive with regard to accepting a wildcard pick for the Ryder Cup and was duly roasted.
Contrast that to Tuesday's unequivocal one-word answer when asked once more whether he would accept an invitation from American captain Corey Pavin to play at Celtic Manor. 'Yes,' he replied.
Whether this is good news for Pavin or even better news for European captain Colin Montgomerie is open to debate, in the wake of Tiger's worst ever performance as a professional at Firestone last week.
But it speaks of a man who came to the realisation that the last thing he needed in the wake of the scandal that came close to destroying his image was to be seen as unpatriotic.
It still doesn't mean he will be playing for his country, of course. Another shocker this week at the season's final major, the US PGA Championship, and he might tell Pavin he is no condition to play, or the captain might draw the same conclusion himself. But it was a smart move, nonetheless, and not the only one he has made in the aftermath of his meltdown at the Bridgestone Invitational.
Take the man who was by his side during practice yesterday. Sean Foley must have thought he had performed enough miracles for one season when he rejuvenated Justin Rose's career to such an extent that he went from a journeyman's ranking on the US Tour to inside the top four.
Now, the game's hot young coach has been sought out by the world No 1.
'I asked him to video my swing and take a look, and you could see I'm heading in the right direction,' said Woods.
Foley also works with Sean O'Hair and Hunter Mahan, who won the Bridgestone in such style on Sunday.
'I don't know if I would describe Sean as an obvious choice to coach Tiger but I definitely think he will improve his game,' said Rose.
'He's got a great way of explaining things and restoring confidence to a player.'
What a fine state the world's top three players are in. With the No 1 in complete disarray and the world No 3 Lee Westwood lame in Portugal, No 2 Phil Mickelson chose to reveal that he has been diagnosed with psoriatic arthritis, a condition so painful that six weeks ago he tried to get out of bed and found that he could not walk.
It certainly explains why he has had such a poor summer to this point.
'It was intensively painful and getting progressively worse but I've had some great doctors, and it is proving very treatable,' he said.
'The medicine I've been taking has been very helpful and I feel back to about 90 per cent.'
The 40-year-old also revealed that he has become a vegetarian, which is quite something for a man so in love with the quarter-pounder that he bought his own burger joint.
Burger king: Phil Mickelson hits a putt during a practice round on the Straits Course'We're working on a veggie burger,' he quipped.
'I know I can't believe it either. It's not me is it?
'But I read a book that said it will help with my condition, so if it helps, I'm all for it.'
Back to Woods, and one of the things that he and Foley noticed instantly was the way an old fault came back to haunt Tiger last week.
'Something I have worked on over the years is keeping my head steady through my swing but I had got away from that,' conceded Woods.
'At Firestone I was rocking my head all over the place. Now I'm trying to shore that up a bit so I can start using my legs properly again and it is starting to feel a little better. One of the great things about our sport is that you can go out the next week and start from fresh.'
Woods is currently 10th in the US Ryder Cup standings, with just the first eight gaining automatic qualification. He needs a minimum top-six finish in this last qualifying event to bridge the gap.
'I haven't talked to Corey but hopefully I won't be a pick,' said the 34-year-old.
On the prowl: Woods wants to earn his spot at the Ryder Cup in October'I want to play my way on to the team.'
In order to do that he will have to improve on last week's abysmal driving display, for no player has a hope of doing well here unless he finds the fairways. If he hits just 35 per cent, as he did at Firestone, Woods will be lucky to make the halfway cut, never mind contend for his 15th major championship.
Even some of his biggest supporters, the bookmakers, have lost faith, for this is the first major this century that Woods will enter as something other than the favourite. At times during his pomp he was 7-4. Here he is 16-1.
Paul Casey talked about how there was a different atmosphere in the locker room these days.
'I think we're all surprised to see what's happening to Tiger on the course, we just don't expect it from him,' he said.
Who knows what to expect next, therefore, but at least we don't have to wait long to find out.
Woods tees off in his first round at 8.20am on Thursday.
source: dailymail
