CKNW Editorial
for February 11, 2000

The unbelievable saga of Tiger Woods continues but it is in fact even more incredible than what the papers make out.

There is, of course, his youth. The men against whom he is being compared – Byron Nelson and Ben Hogan – were in the prime of their careers when they set their marks of 11 and 6 consecutive PGA wins respectively. Tiger is a mere broth of a lad by comparison. But there is more to it than that.

Byron Nelson set his record in 1945 – a war year when Ben Hogan, the Mangrum brothers and most other big names were in the services. There is no doubt but that 11 straight victories in any league is not to be sneezed at but 1945 was scarcely a vintage year. The second on the money list that year was the otherwise anonymous Jug McSpaden whose only other claim to fame was as Nelson’s punching bag in a series of exhibitions the two put on the following year including here in Vancouver at the old Quilchena Golf Club. Nelson was a true star – don’t get me wrong. He won the Masters, the United States Open and the PGA and is deservedly in Golf’s Hall of Fame. But his 1945 record is blown out of all proportions by the golf journalists who ought to know better.

Ben Hogan was better by far than Nelson – indeed he was if not the best of all time, the best of his time and no one can do more than that. In 1948 he was nearly killed in a head-on collision with a Greyhound bus and wasn’t expected to live much less walk again- Golf at the championship level was out of the question. Yet he won the US Open in 1950, the year after his accident and in 1953 won the so-called "Little Slam" of the US Open, the Masters and the British Open and couldn’t compete in the PGA (which he had already won twice) because it conflicted with the British Open.

But Hogan’s record in 1948 was against inferior fields than play today. There were a number of superb golfers in Hogan’s day but the depth of any PGA field was considerably less than it was by Jack Nicklaus’ time and Nicklaus would be the first to admit that in his time there was not the top to bottom depth of talent there is on the PGA Tour today. Amongst other things, there was not the depth of foreign talent on tour as now.

Golf has dramatically changed since Tiger came on the scene and much of the change is due to him. No longer are there playboys like Tony Lema, Jimmy Demaret and Walter Hagen on tour. Walter Hagen was the man who, late to the first tee for is final match in the then match play PGA, was asked "hitting a few, Walter?" to which he replied, "no, having a few". No one gets away with that any more.

Undoubtedly there is better equipment today. But there is better instruction too. Butch Harmon, who is Tiger’s teacher, and whose father Claude won the Masters in 1948, makes a huge living coaching Tiger and one or two others. Harmon and others profit not only by what they’ve been taught – and Harmon follows the principles as laid down by Ben Hogan – but they have more modern teaching aides. Moreover, almost all pro golfers today are in top physical shape.

As I say, you can never be more than the best of your time. Comparisons are hard to make. But there is no question but that Hogan’s competition and especially Nelson’s competition didn’t rate against what Tiger plays against.

Will Woods flame out? Will he suddenly, like Ralph Guildahl before the war, Frank Beard, and Ian Baker-Finch suddenly and without explanation lose his game? Will he simply look at his bank book one day and say to hell with it?

Perhaps. But I don’t think so. This man wants to win tournaments, especially majors. I think he’ll have his slumps and just like Nicklaus and Hogan before him will cause the golfing world occasional astonishment by not winning what was expected of them. But my guess is that you’ll see at least 20 more years of Tiger Woods and that all the records, even those of the great Nicklaus, will be erased.

Why do I say that? Because I watched, as many of you did, in the Mercedes Championship in Spain where after taking 8 shots on the freak 1th hole, Tiger came back to win … and I just saw the unbelievable last weekend when he made up 7 shots and passed 5 golfers in the last 7 holes at Pebble Beach.

No, folks, if you’re tired of seeing Tiger win I’d switch to another sport if I were you. Because this guy’s for real.