The Loop
Media: Tiger's warmup focus 'absolutely ridiculous'
By John Strege
It is a difference of opinion that makes horse races, Mark Twain wrote, and though there will be some, maybe many, who disagree with Brandel Chamblee, he claimed the lead out of the gate on Saturday morning with his criticism of Tiger Woods warmup focus.
On Golf Channel's "Live from the PGA Championship," Chamblee saw something in Woods' warmup that gave him pause. Woods had tucked a golf glove into his right armpit on the practice tee, "basically to accentuate the feeling of connection on the back swing," Chamblee's Golf Channel colleague Notah Begay said.
"It's ridiculous that one of the greatest players of all time is working on thoughts like that before he tees off in the third round of a major championship," Chamblee said. "It's absolutely ridiculous. He's thinking about golf swing right now. He's not warming up. He's not thinking about the shots he's got to play, he's thinking specifically about the golf swing.
"How can you be a guy who shoots six lower than everybody else last Friday and then a week later, before you tee off in a major championship, you're working on the most pedestrian of things in a golf swing?"
Tiger went out and missed the first fairway at Oak Hill Country Club with a fairway wood, missed the second fairway with a 3-iron, played the front nine in two-over par 37 and was through as a contender.
Chamblee vs. Cook
John Cook, a full-time Champions Tour player and part-time "Morning Drive" panelist at Golf Channel, was watching and got into a friendly Twitter debate with Chamblee on the subject of Woods' pre-round warmup.
Cook: "So @chambleebrandel roasting TW for a glove under arm to feel a swing thought but no comment when @IanJamesPoulter drops the TinCup boards [alignment sticks]"
Chamblee: "One is for alignment, one is for the swing and the evidence of the detriment of thinking swing. Tiger's start"
Cook: "TW certainly plays golf swing sometimes but 9 wins in 2 years since starting w/Foley is hardly inefficient"
And so it went for several more posts from each.
Faldo on Tiger
CBS' Nick Faldo on Woods' major championship struggles:
"He wanted to beat Jack Nicklaus's 18 majors, get to 19, and like Jack he had this amazing ability to make things happen. Now he NEEDS to make things happen, to restore his legacy, and i think it's adding a totally different pressure to him."â¿
A low blow
TNT's Ernie Johnson on the portly Kiradech Aphibarnrat. "Here's the guy they refer to as Thailand's version of John Daly."
Presumably whoever "they" are, they meant that he bears a resemblance to Daly when the latter was at his heaviest.
Tiger as Johnny Cash?
Woods chose black as his predominant apparel color on Saturday, prompting Begay to invoke a comparison with Johnny Cash.
"He's got the mostly black going on, and I don't know if that's because he thinks his chances of winning this tournament have gone by the wayside, or if he's trying to embody a little Johnny Cash, the man in black, and come on like a freight train."
Duf
CBS' David Feherty on Jason Dufner: "He looks like he wouldn't fog up a mirror."
On Twitter:
Jack Welch, former CEO of General Electric (which owned NBC at the time): "Time for more @Fehertwit [David Feherty] to rescue CBS coverage...only hope with all ads and chat"
Comment: A former TV executive complaining about too many commercials?
(Getty Images photo)