Quotes of the Week: On Tiger’s swing, WD, future

Published February 5, 2017 09:10 PM

The Top Quotes of the Week from around the golf world concerning Tiger Woods’ withdrawal from Omega Dubai Desert Classic.

“[He] tried to work it out last night, didn’t really get it worked out. Had treatment starting pretty early this morning. ... He can move around, [but] he can’t make a full rotation on the swing.” - on Tiger Woods’ withdrawal from the Omega Dubai Desert Classic with back spasms

“There’s trends here: surgery, followed by rehab, followed by re-injury. So it’s clear to me that he’s causing himself further harm with his golf swing. … But it’s pretty clear to me that the one commonality is the golf swing hasn’t changed. He continues to re-injure himself. So in my opinion, he needs to change his golf swing before he’s ever going to have a sustained period of health as it relates to his game.” - following Woods’ withdrawal on Friday

“Maybe this is the end of his career. ... We’ve been blessed to have him in this game. We’d love to see him for another 10 years, but I just don’t see it if he doesn’t change his golf swing.” - following Woods’ withdrawal on Friday

“I look at Tiger, and I can’t help but think he looks like an old man. He looks like the oldest ... 41-year-old man in the history of the game. I saw him getting out of the bunker on the first hole and he was standing very stiff and upright as he was getting out of the bunker, and he looked like he was walking around protecting an issue that he wasn’t speaking to. That’s very much what it looked like to me.” - following Woods’ first-round 77

“Whether my swing looks classical, rhythmical or it may look unorthodox, I don’t care. As long as I don’t feel that nerve pain. Anyone in here who has ever had nerve pain in their back or anywhere in their spine, it’s like hitting your funny bone a thousand times a day; it’s just not fun. And I would much rather not have to go through that again.” - on his swing prior to the start of the Omega Dubai Desert Classic

“No, I wasn’t in pain at all. I was just trying to hit shots and I wasn’t doing a very good job.” - on his first-round 77

“Are we ever going to see him playing at the heights he did back in the early 2000s? Probably not, but the main thing he has to do right now is somehow get himself healthy. He’s been off for almost a year and a half, and now he’s come back but he still can’t finish a tournament. To me, that’s not a good sign.” - on Woods’ future prospects

“We all want to see him playing well again,” he said, “but right now I’m concerned that someone I have admired for so long, and who I believe is the best player who ever lived, might not be able to play at any kind of level again.” - on Woods’ future prospects