“Just a matter of time” – Tiger
Soon after capturing The Memorial title on Sunday Tiger Woods said that he knew he’d hit top form again soon.
Soon after capturing The Memorial title on Sunday, Tiger Woods said that he knew he’d hit top form again soon.
The world number one silenced any doubters by closing with two birdies to cap a brilliant final-round 65 at Jack Nicklaus’ Muirfield Village course in Ohio.
He also said that he’d never worried about his ability to again hit the heights following his eighth-month lay-off following major surgery to his left knee.
He said: “It was just a matter of time. As I have said before, I was just starting to go practice after my rounds.
“At Quail Hollow I hit a few balls only on two of the days. TPC (Sawgrass) I was able to hit consistently. I was starting to get physically good enough where I could do that. “If I had a problem, I could go on the range and fix it. I was get to the point where I could start doing these things again.
“My practice sessions started getting longer at home. Hit more balls, play more golf, all these things. People don’t realise you need to do that. You need to have that ability.
“You can’t just think about your swing and how to be great the next day. I needed to do the reps and do some good practice sessions this past couple of weeks. It came together this week.”
Woods’ return to his best comes at the perfect time with the US Open at Bethpage less than a fortnight away.
He admitted: “It was nice to play this well going into the US Open. This is how you have to hit it in order to win US Opens. Especially at Bethpage (where he has won before). That golf course is as big as they come.
“You know, with the rough as deep, even with it graduated, it’s super thick. From the guys that I’ve talked to who have played it recently, they said already you can’t get to some of these greens if you hit the ball in the rough, even in the first cut.
“It’s just one of those things where you have to hit the ball well all week. I did that in 2002. That was one of the reasons why I was up there.”
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