Friday, September 6, 1996

Fore play

Twenty-year-old Tiger Woods is the current sultan of swing. But is he the next Jack Nicklaus?

Canadian Amateur champ bides his time

By TIM O'CONNOR
For The Financial Post We don't need to discuss why Nike is paying Tiger Woods US$60 million over five years, or how the sunshine twinkles off his perfectly straight teeth or how the three-time U.S. Amateur champ may lead great multitudes of non-golfers into the land of duffery.
No, this you know already. Instead, we ask that if indeed Woods is "the next Nicklaus," as has been postulated ad nauseam all week at the Canadian Open, what has he got in the talent and swing departments that has won him the prediction of Nicklaus -- and others of his ilk -- that this cat can't miss as a pro?
Certainly, when you savor the visceral pleasure of watching him powder a golf ball, he seems to possess all the necessary tools to get the job done.
A Tiger Woods drive is breath-taking and beautiful. Not just for its awesome length, but also the penetrating trajectory, the towering height and the gentle draw as the ball reaches the apex of its arc. It's also the sound -- the whistling "phew" created when a ball is compressed mightily and struck purely on the sweet spot.
While they criticized Nicklaus for his flying elbow and nitpick other stars for their "flaws," the connoisseurs of swings say Woods has a model swing that's executed with great tempo and in immaculate balance.
"Some golfers' swings are based on exceptional feel and rhythm, while others are based on textbook mechanics," says tour guru Hank Haney, whose students include Mark O'Meara. "Tiger, like Sam Snead, is that rare player who is a mixture of both."
When Woods freewheels with his Cobra, steel-shafted driver, he can crank it 330 yards. So what, you say? John Daly's been doing it for years, but often in woods and ponds. Even players not known for length, such as O'Meara, can get it into 300-yard territory when they need to.
But unlike Daly, and most everyone else, Woods appears in complete control of that explosive force. His boomers usually find the fairway, and when he does stray, he's got the ability to create almost any shot to get out of jail.
So, how does he hit the ball so far and stay in control? Well, he's certainly got a great swing, he's young and limber, but he's also dripping in talent, a one-in-a-million athlete.
"He swings the club very fast," says Woody Austin, the Florida native who captured the PGA Tour's top rookie award last season.
"In the hitting area, the clubhead is moving so quickly and yet he doesn't lose his balance. And when you can swing that hard and stay in balance, your timing is so good. Timing plus clubhead speed equals a lot of distance, and he's got both," says Austin, who has played three times with Woods this season, including a practice round Tuesday at Glen Abbey.
"I could swing as hard as he does, but I couldn't stay in balance like he does. He has a perfect golf swing, but he releases the club so much harder than anyone else."
Most tour players say they are impressed with Woods and respect his abilities, but they are not intimidated. But, if Woods makes a routine out of outdriving them into the middle of the fairways, it's going to grate.
Texan Omar Uresti also played with Woods and Austin on Tuesday. He was awed by Woods' prodigious pokes.
"God, he hits it really long," Uresti exclaimed. "He hit it 40 and 50 yards by me all day. And straight. It's amazing. He made the fairway bunkers on No. 8 and No. 9 obsolete."
Uresti also watched Woods knock down the flagstick. Granted, it was a practice round, but impressive nonetheless. On 14, Woods nearly holed a six-iron from the fairway.
On the par-three 15th, he misjudged the wind and hit the right fringe. He immediately hit another ball about six inches from the hole, and remarked: "Same hole, a little more experience."
And experience will certainly tell the tale of whether this Tiger goes in the tank or justifies all the hype.
Tim O'Connor is a freelance golf writer. He writes about golf for The Post on Wednesdays and Fridays.