"I think we can officially say Tiger has lost his game...and his mind."

Steve DiMeglio with the low point of Tiger's round, a 16th hole Lionel Messi impersonation.

After scrambling to make par on the par-5 15th hole, where his second shot was wayward to the right of the green and his third shot ended up in a bunker, Woods stepped to the tee at the par-3 16th.

And promptly kicked his club.

Woods, a four-time Masters champion, sprayed his tee shot to the right of the greenside bunker at 16, and before the ball had landed, Woods had dropped his club to the ground. From there, he booted the head of the iron with his right foot, sending the club 10 yards backward.

At that time, CBS golf analyst Nick Faldo said Woods had clearly lost his game. "I think we can officially say Tiger has lost his game . . . and his mind."

Comments

[Brad]

If Tiger were a thoroughbred, they would surely have to put him down.

He's already been to stud, so there's not much left for the ole fella

[Ky Laffoon's Ghost]

Got back from the course in time to see that on masters.com. Didn't look good, but Sir Nick is maybe a bit harsh? And it was more like a 10-foot kick instead of a 10-yard kick. The dump into the bunker after the perfect tee shot at 18 was more telling, the subsequent bunker shot notwithstanding.

And I never want to hear about Fred's bad back ever again.

[d.b.cooper]

Once was one of Tiger's biggest fans and hoped he would win 25-30 majors.

That all changed maybe 5 years ago when I got fed up with his on course behavior.

Now he won't sniff the Nicklaus record and that suits me fine.

[UnderTheChin]

Apologists will be out in fore soon

[Germaine Greer]

So what would help the image of golf more - inviting a woman to be a member of Augusta, or stopping this angry little man from playing next year?

[Stevie Janowski]

Maybe Tioer needs some game improvement irons with a bit of offset to help him square up the face

[Pat]

The problem is, among others, that young players still emulate his behavior. My kid plays high school golf, and it is often at a tournament when a kid drops his club after a bad shot or throws it.

So in that regard, he has done more harm to the game than good.

[Squeaky]

That was one of the more riveting moments of the afternoon -- the kind of odd happening that cries out to be replayed. But it wasn't. What is the logic behind CBS' decision not to show a replay and discuss the club kick? Options:
1) deference to Tiger
2) fear of inviting the Wrath of the Members by highlighting poor sportsmanship at Augusta

Curious to hear the thoughts of others on this ... Which butt is CBS kissing, Tiger's or Augusta's?

[TXQ]

After Faldo said Tiger "lost his mind," he did add "right now." So he toned it down somewhat.

[Tim]

Greg Norman's collapse in 96 was worth drowning a few clubs. But he handled his defeat with class. Nicklaus handled his defeats with class. Woods handles his frustration by acting out like a little spoiled baby.

Hey jackass... show some respect. Stop grunting g--dammit every time you hit a crappy shot on 10, 13 and 15. You can restrain yourself... you did in the fairway on 18 when you wanted to fling the club but the clubhouse and 20 thousand were viewing.

Your actions this afternoon make Karen Crouse look good this week.

[coldpga]

It always suprised me how many people previously ignored his behavior on the course. He's always acted like a child. It is sad that the kids watching him will think this is how you should act when you have some ability.

[Porky Oliver's Putter]

Hey KLG.....Couples has a bad back?? sarcasm intended)

I have noticed that Freddie's back starts bothering him when his game goes south and putts don't drop. Sort of like Tigers Achilles.

By the way, did everyone hear that Kelly Tilghman had to be necessitated when Tiger missed yet another par putt on #16?

[Ian]

Couldn't care less if I never saw him on the golf course again

[HB Leonard]

Tiger needs to watch some film of Tommy Bolt back in the day. If you want to toss a club, let's get entertainment value!

[highside]

@Stevie Janowski

Maybe he should replace those difficult-to-hit short irons with easier-to-hit woods. The wooden equivalent of a 9 iron is about a 13 wood.

[Huh?]

I thought he was back?

Wasn't it getting close?

Almost there?

Who believed it?

[Used to be Former Stack & Tilt Convert]

The big question is: who is La Cava pulling for this weekend?

[Dsl]

What a frustrating round. How on earth does he hit that shot so poorly on 16? A 144 yard 9 iron should be a bloody cakewalk for him. It looked like he was trying to hook the heck out of it. Why? I don't get why he seems to want to make everything so difficult. It's like he's doing it on purpose.

[RickABQ]

Watching Tiger and MAJ together in the same grouping was interesting - Tiger used to be the really "cool" golfer, and now MAJ is. Tiger didn't stand a chance against MAJ in the cool factor today.

And on a slightly related topic, why does my wife find MAJ's somewhat enhanced belly perfectly acceptable but not mine? Ahhh, life is unfair!!! :)

[CommentsAreEmbarrassing]

The comments on here are unbelievable.
"Couldn't care less if I never saw him on the golf course again." Really? Never want to see Tiger Woods play again? I think that's what you're trying say.
"Tiger used to be the really "cool" golfer, and now MAJ is." Yes, the old, fat, red haired, ponytailed Spanish guy is cooler than Tiger.
Faldo was over the top. He did lessen it with the "right now" comment.

[Average Golfer]

Maybe there is something to that karma stuff.

[Ian]

@ CommentsAreEmbarrasing; Correct - I have no interest in watching him play golf. But I could watch MAJ all day long. Handles himself well, smiles to the crowd, donates his own money to support a tournament in Spain, is personable and charismatic, etc. And BTW - if you saw Woods and MAJ walking from 17 green to 18 tee, MAJ was high-fiving the kids who held out their hand - Tiger just walked straight past them.

[Chicago pt]

The douchiest of douchebags, he is

[Danny Boy]

Tough couple of days for Tiger, for sure. At least we all know Henrik Stenson fans don't mind an outburst or two. Hope Tiger can get on track for the weekend. Otherwise, we have to listen to all the Haters jump back on their soapboxes again.

[Sari]

Strangely, he seemed remarkably composed-- dare I say resigned-- in the post round interviews.

[Alex H]

Hate him, love him, despise him, admire him, do whatever you please. Objectively, I looked at the TV and genuinely felt for the guy. The funny thing is that I never really liked him much as a dude per se, with the condescending interviews, frat boy jokes, and so on. But when he eventually duffed the flop on 15 and hit the 9-iron on 16 dead right, I didn't think any less of him for kicking the club. It's what's so endearing about golf - if you've played at a reasonably high level before, and you all of a sudden lose it without an explanation or as much as a clue anywhere in sight, you lose it. I've lost my mind trying to figure out why the ball is going where it's going. I can see where he's coming from - and I'd be just as frustrated.
In that moment, I thought Tiger was more approachable, understandable, and emotionally laid bare than before.

I was rooting for Rory to win the whole thing, but I truly hope Tiger gets it back together.

[ForeRight!]

I can't hope help but look at the honorary starters. Fast forward 20 years and wondere if tiger would have the same gravitas. Some day, how he played is going to matter less than who he was.

[Hole in Three]

Where did Charlie Crymer go? AWOL or suicide watch?

When Tiger plays well, Crymer is yucking it up with his face plastered against the tv camera at Golf Central. When Tiger stumbles, the local authorities have to get out the bloodhounds to track him down.

[sgolfer]

Or did Charlie Cheeseburger get a demotion?

It looks like he has been replaced by Ricky Fowler's girlfriend's dad and Steve Flesch.

[Buffett]

Oh the hypocrisy here. MAJ is the new cool and a great example for kids? Does that include his smoking?

[James H.]

The smoking or banging a million porn skanks and pancake waitresses, Buffett? An STD is the gift that keeps on giving!

I can picture Mickelson geezering out as an honorary starter but not Woods - the Green Jackets won't invite him.

[KRoper]

RickABQ: It's the pony tail. Get one of those and a case of Dos Equis and you too can be the most interesting man in the world.

[A3]

Time for the belly putter Tiger.

[A.I.]

How much more evidence do people really need that the Sean Foley/Stack & Tilt Swing just doesn't cut it in most tournaments, on most golf courses?

Tiger's Sean Foley/Stack & Tilt swing is great for the driving range: it is a flat-lie, driving range swing. (Further reason Tiger's win on flat Florida course last week was more flukey than meets the eye). Look what happens when you put that swing on Augusta - where there is a slope on nearly every approach shot: disaster ensues.

The one thing Woods could always rely on was consistent iron play. I stand by the assertion that a Stack & Tilt swing cannot hold-up on a course that isn't flat all-over. Furthermore, the stats speak for themselves. The swing Tiger is using has not been proven and guys who have used it and left it have been better off (Aaron B., etc.).

I have no personal agenda for any swing. This is just my observation. The swing Woods is using looks good on a flat, driving range lie, but it basically produces one shot when executed properly - a high draw.

Tiger's current swing has mangled his ability to hit iron shots on uneven lies, ruined his wedge game and transferred itself into his putting mechanics, thereby ruining his once fluid and beautiful putting stroke.

Tiger's fault has been his quest to become a golfing machine, but that's not what made Tiger the champion of 14 majors. It was his ability play with feel, be in the zone, hit great pitch shots, own a flawless putting stroke and possess an array of iron shots.

Until he ditches the S&T/Sean Foley swing, he is done. He might pull off a win here or there on a favorable course that's flat and suits his eye, but his quest for 19 is a lost cause.

[A.I.]

I also wanted to add, Tiger drop-kicking his 9-iron was just plain ridiculous and funny in a Judge Smails sort of way. It was almost if The Mechanic pulled a Rodney Dangerfield with Tiger before his tee-shot at 16 and said: "Hey Tiger, thousand bucks you block it into the bunker."

[Ian]

@A.I - very insightful comments. Thanks

[Sean]

@ A I

chapeau!

[Jeff Smith]

Ding-ding-ding to dsl: What in the hell are you trying to hook a 144-yard shot for? Hit the ball over the flagstick, take your shot at a 20-foot birdie and get on with it. I have no idea what Tiger thinks he's trying to prove.

[Mulligan]

Not only did my generation have better music, we also had Jack.

[Stanley Thompson]

I thought Tiger's post game interview was very tame considering that he had had a most frustrating day. he was calm and answered the questions in a pleasant manner.
A new Tiger....or a better interviewer.