Tricky pick

• Recommend0
• Tweet0
• Comments0
• Email
• Print

AP Photo/Dino VournasWoods, paired with Striker, excelled in the 2009 Presidents Cup, going 4-0. But Stricker's neck injury could make pairing Tiger a pain in the neck for Couples.

This story appears in the Nov. 14, 2011 issue of ESPN The Magazine.

Spare a thought for Thomas Aiken, even though you've never heard of the man. Like Tiger Woods, the South African golfer finished 29th in qualifying points for his Presidents Cup side. Unlike Woods, Aiken has won this year, at the Open de Espana. Still, Greg Norman didn't pick Aiken for the International team -- and might not be able to pick him out on a crowded driving range.

U.S. captain Fred Couples chose Woods a month before the deadline. Tiger's still Tiger. At least that's Freddy's bet.

"He's the best player in the world forever," Couples said in defending his good friend. Norman, showing little regard for the First Commandment of captains -- thou shalt not criticize your rival team -- declared in mid-October that if he ran the U.S. squad, he'd have selected PGA champion Keegan Bradley over Woods.

"I pick guys who are ready to get in there and play and have performed to the highest levels leading up to it," Norman said. A few days later, international team member Geoff Ogilvy piled on: "I'm not going to stand up and say Tiger is a horrible pick, but I'm going to say it's very disappointing that Bradley doesn't get to play." (Read: Tiger is a horrible pick.)

It's not just Woods' recent troubles that make him a risk when it comes to the "team" part of team competition: In Ryder Cup and Presidents Cup foursomes and four-ball matches, Woods is batting .511, at 23-22-2. Contrast that to his combined 8-3-1 singles record -- or his match-play dominance in three straight U.S. Amateurs, three straight U.S. Junior Amateurs and three WGC-Accenture Match Play titles. One-on-one, Woods is Michael Jordan; two-on-two, he's not even Scottie Pippen.

"It's so hard to pair Tiger -- he's intimidating," says Paul Azinger, who lost a best-ball match while teamed with Woods at the 2002 Ryder Cup, captained the 2008 U.S. Ryder Cup team to a win (without an injured Woods) and now provides golf analysis for ESPN around the majors. "It was just uncomfortable when I played with Tiger. We're both alpha males, and we didn't know what the hell to do. We didn't dialogue. Tiger needs to be the guy directing traffic and knowing he's the leader."

Granted, when Couples chose Woods, he likely considered all this ancient history. In the 2009 Presidents Cup, Couples paired Woods with steady Steve Stricker. They went 4-0, then reunited for a 2-1 encore at the 2010 Ryder Cup. The alpha had found his beta. But Stricker is far from a lock to play in this Cup. For the past few months, Stricker has been suffering from a herniated disc in his neck.

Couples, then, might again have to find a new pairing for Woods -- and theories abound as to why this has proved so hard. In alternate-shot matches, Woods' erratic tee shots mean his partners are often forced to hit the type of recovery shots that, well, only Tiger Woods can pull off. They also must adjust to his ball, which Nike customizes with compression rates to match Woods' massive clubhead speed. Rationales big and small notwithstanding, the biggest question has always been: Does Woods really get up for team matches?

Woods' captains offered nothing but glowing reviews when we asked about his commitment: In the clubhouse, Woods is "absolutely terrific -- he really enjoys being with the team," said Tom Kite, his 1997 Ryder Cup captain. "One of the guys, a leader and very engaged and passionate -- tremendous," said Jack Nicklaus, when asked to describe Woods as a member of his 2003, '05 and '07 Presidents Cup teams. "A wonderful teammate and wonderful in the team room," added 2002 Ryder Cup captain Curtis Strange, who also appears on ESPN as an analyst.

Still, should motivation be needed, Strange seems happy to offer some strategy, telling The Mag: "I wouldn't have Tiger penciled in four times, and I'd certainly let him know that he's going to have to prove his worth to play all four [team] matches." Tack those quotes onto Woods' bulletin board next to the taunts from Norman and Ogilvy, then consider the tale of Stephen Ames: Prior to his opening-round match against Woods in the 2006 WGC-Accenture Match Play, Ames famously called out the world's top-ranked player at the time. Ames received, in return, a 9-and-8 beatdown, the most lopsided margin in PGA Tour match-play history.

Then again, that was five years -- and 28 qualifying positions -- ago for Woods.

Follow The Mag on Twitter: @ESPNmag and like us on Facebook.

• Recommend0
• Tweet0
• Comments0
• Email
• Print