As I was watching Tiger Woods’ post victory press conference at Torry Pines recently, I couldn’t help but think about the dynamics of what was really going on in that press tent.
On its face, it was a typical press conference. Reporters were asking questions and the interviewee was answering them. But, with Tiger, nothing is really as it seems. Like most professional athletes, Tiger professes that he doesn’t enjoy doing these interviews, but, I think, deep down inside, he actually revels in the give and take that transpires.
With Tiger, these events are a sparring match or a mini post- tournament tournament, where reporters (many who have been covering Tiger for years) try to get Tiger to reveal his inner feelings by phrasing their questions in such a manner that ol’ Tiger may actually be tricked into revealing his true feelings. But Tiger, like the jungle cat that he is so aptly nicknamed for, is way too wily to fall for such transparent trickery.
But, as it must, the dance continues tournament after tournament, year after year and we still know almost nothing about what drives Tiger or what he really thinks about almost any topic. All we really know is what he opts to tell us and that is that he loves to win more than than anything else. And, I believe, that is all we will ever know about him.
So, maybe, at the end of the day, that is all who Tiger really is. Someone driven to win at all cost. Sure, some day, Tiger may sit down with a psychologist and figure out what he is all about, but, my guess is that he will go though his life and win at whatever he does until he either no longer has the ability to do so or no longer cares to.
And, as fans of golf, maybe that should be all we need to know.
