'At his staccato, excruciating worst in fending off questions'

Tiger Woods reverts to type at Press Conference

FROM THE DAILY TELEGRAPH WEBSITE
By OLIVER BROWN, Adare, Co Limerick
Tiger Woods was ready to board his private jet and head back into the maelstrom. After sweeping into Ireland with a fanfare that would have flattered the Pope, he returned to Florida 36 hours later in a forlorn effort to redress the chaos of his private life.
As so often with Woods , his most telling statements were to be gleaned from what he did not say. Having paid due deference to the J P McManus Invitational here at Adare Manor, the worthy two-day event he had just graced, the world No 1 was at his staccato, excruciating worst in fending off all questions about why he was heading home so soon.
Pressed on why he would not be refining his links golf technique before next week’s Open Championship at St Andrews, he replied: “Because I need to go home.”
Asked if his abrupt departure for Orlando was due to “personal stuff”, he said, tersely: “To see my kids.”
The most uncomfortable silence occurred as a reporter wondered aloud if Woods felt that all his misdemeanours had been worth the aggravation, in light of his ragged form since returning to the game. He interjected: “I think you are reading too much into this.”
For those hoping for the humility he had promised to show, this was a dispiriting reversion to type. The anger simmered in Woods’ eyes.
He has failed to win any of the six events he has entered after becoming embroiled in sex scandal and there are suspicions, with his marriage to Elin Nordegren understood to be on the verge of collapse, that golf has become a relative triviality in his life.
Traditionally he has started mobilising for an Open early, travelling with friend Mark O’Meara to play such great Irish courses as Royal Dublin the week before, to restore his feel for the links. But this time he is compelled to be a transatlantic commuter, trying desperately to repair the damage that all his affairs have caused.
“Golf is something that I’ve done for a very long time, and there are times in one’s life when things get put into perspective,” he admitted. “One being when my father passed away, and obviously with what I have been going through lately.”
But Woods could not avoid the fact that, before last month’s US Open at Pebble Beach, he had expressed his wish that every major was contested at St Andrews. He has won the last two Opens played on the Old Course - the first, in 2000, by eight shots - and if any tournament can help purge the frustrations of his season, it is this one.
“To win at the home of golf, that would be what every champion wants to have happen,” he said.
“This is where it all started. To walk up the last hole, I’ve had that at other championships, but this is different. The first time I played it was in 1995. I fell in love with it as the lines and angles are always different to what they say.
“People say, 'Hit miles left', but if you hit miles left you have no angle. It forces you to be more strategic in how you play. Your touch has to be great as you will have a lot of long putts that break in three or four directions.
"Many past champions have had great short games, as well as great imagination and ball control. It’s a fantastic course. What genius it took to lay it out that way.”
Woods was not quite so enthusiastic under the steady rain of Adare, despite showing playing partners A P McCoy and Mick Fitzgerald the way with a respectable three-under-par round of 69, 10 shots better than his mediocre first round on Monday.
Around 10 children broke through the security cordon on the ninth tee but, as his mood darkened, these would be about the only autographs he signed before Air Force Tiger took to the skies once more.
Team-mates racing jockey AP McCoy and the now-retired Mick Fitzgerald described it as a dream come true to play with the golfer.
"There were no lows, it was highs all the way," said McCoy, who plays off a handicap of 14.
His caddy and best friend, Irish champion jockey Ruby Walsh, described Woods as a "gentleman" who was great company over the 18 holes.
McCoy, from Co Antrim, hooked a drive on the sixth hole and his ball struck seven-year-old Stephen O'Loughlin, of Beaufort, Co Kerry, on the leg.
"I heard him crying when I got down there, so I got Tiger to sign a cap and gave it to him," he said. "Funny enough, that stopped the crying."
McCoy said Woods was very chatty and although he was not really interested in horse racing, he asked him a lot about a jockey's weight, hydration and diet regime.
But Woods remained elusive to most, only briefly breaking a self-imposed ban on signing autographs for any of the thousands of fans who thronged into the five-star resort. Around ten children broke through heavy security on the ninth tee and were given an autograph - but many more were rebuked. The star did take time to give signatures to several disabled children waiting for his arrival at the 18th.
Amateurs taking part in the invitational event have to fork out around £34,000 each for the pleasure of sharing a round with one of the game's biggest names.


It's not all bad for Tiger ... he's driving the ball longer than ever!

Tiger Woods switched Nike balls for the ATandT National. His new ball has a slightly firmer cover and spins less than the old one, writes James Achenbach on the GolfWeek website
This exact model will not be sold at retail, although it can be found on the U.S. Golf Association’s conforming list (Nike One, with a star symbol between the two words).
“It is the exact same construction as the Nike One Tour D (available to consumers), with the exception of a slightly softer cover,” Nike spokesperson Beth Gast said.
Woods must have liked it. His official driving average for the week was 324.8 yards, second in the field. He is averaging 293.3 yards this season.
In the second round, Woods outdrove the long-hitting Dustin Johnson, with whom he was paired, by 26 and 10 yards on the holes where drives were measured