Is Tiger the Greatest of them all?

I went to my mirror and asked it a question.
"Mirror Mirror on the wall, who is the greatest of them all?"
The mirror quickly replied.
"If you open your eyes, there is no need of reply. It's Tiger, It's Tiger and it's daylight to the rest"

In pubs and bars across the world the debate of who is the greatest sportsman will continue for eternity. As far I am concerned you can forget Ali, Jordan, Bradman and the rest. Tiger Woods is the best I have ever seen and if I am lucky to see one half as good after he has gone I will be a lucky man.

In the Arnold Palmer Invitational on the weekend Tiger wasn't playing his best. The first three rounds were very average by his standards. It nearly appeared as if he wanted to challenge himself and thrill his hordes of fans and admirers, the truth was he just wasn't playing as well as he can. After a trademark run of birdies on the back nine on the Sunday afternoon he sat in the middle of the 18th fairway tied for the lead. All of a sudden a head wind blew up leaving him with a 170 yard shot over water with no green to work with. With no hesitation he calmly plops his ball in the middle of the green assuring a most likely play off. In a week where his putter was rusty he calmly bangs in a 20 footer to leave all and sundry shaking with excitement, robbed of a playoff, but blessed by seeing yet another Tiger moment.

This story, as special as it sounds, just joins a long list of super human tales of how he has systematically taken over the golf world. He is simply a cut above. Sure there have been greats in the past like Nicholson, Snead, Player and Palmer himself, but they excelled in eras where there were a few very good golfers and a host of non contenders.

If you take Tiger Woods out of the equation in modern day golf then it is the hottest contended sport on the planet. There are hundreds of golfers that can win at the elite level and it comes down to how well they play on the day. If the puts drop and the ball bounces their way then they can win the title. Tiger on the other hand is different. If he is on his game then he wins and wins easy.

So now we are left with the Masters. Without question the most important tournament of them all. So will Tiger win? The answer is probably yes! He might have an off tournament but that is the only way he doesn't put another green jacket into the closet come Sunday afternoon. The notion of a golfer having to play badly too lose is a concept that applies to Tiger and Tiger alone.

I would hate to think how much money you would have if you backed Tiger to win every tournament he ever teed off in. I urge you to back Tiger and enjoy the ride and enjoy watching your bank roll grow. Cheer on the greatest sportsman of our time and just remember if you ever find me in a bar one of these days I'll be the one arguing, until I am hoarse, that the Tiger is the greatest of them all.

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