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For Woods, Masters Is Just Step One
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"When the spotlight is blazing, he separates himself," Arnold Palmer, a four-time Masters champion himself, said during his invitational tournament at Bay Hill last month, when Woods knocked in a 24-foot putt at the 72nd hole to win by a shot over Sean O'Hair. "He handles the chaos. Nicklaus was like that. When the heat started coming, Jack handled everything [while] others couldn't survive. Tiger's doing that."
In addition to his imposing physical skills as arguably the strongest, fittest player in the game, Woods is the first to agree he has more shots in his arsenal than he did when he won four straight majors in 2000 and '01. His imagination in creating shots is unmatched, but many of his playing peers say what truly sets him apart has been his ability to stay focused and motivated while blocking out distractions.
On Tuesday, Woods once again gave full credit to his late father, Earl, who died in May 2006 after a long battle with prostate cancer, for his mental acuity, particularly his ability to deal with the crushing pressure of a back nine on Sunday at Augusta National, or any other venue in the world.
"I asked my dad to do that to me, to make me a tougher golfer, to make me a tougher person," he said. "So he did. He put me through the same stuff that he had to go through in Special Forces, all the psychology part of it. It was fun to me. It was frustrating to me at first because I didn't understand how to deal with it, but I just had to figure it out. He used to pull all the little tricks."
And in 1987, Woods actually did have an undefeated season, when he won every one of the 36 junior tournaments he entered.
"Peaked at 11," he said.
That's barring a Grand Slam apparently still very much "easily in reach."
