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June 11, 2004
From Great to Good
On the eve of the US Open golf tournament, I am struck by the consistent questioning of Tiger Woods? performance of late. Tiger is not winning as many major tournaments as he did a few years ago. In fact, he just isn?t winning as much as he used to.
The theories about this decline in golfing success are numerous. Among the most common theories are those that focus on changes in his life. He has gotten engaged. He is more and more active in outside activities such as his charity work. There are too many things that now take away from his golf.
What is most interesting to me is that there is always the implication that it is somehow bad that Tiger?s life has become more than golf tournaments. That he is somehow no longer great.
I remember an interview with his father years ago where he predicted that Tiger would not always be "only" a golfer. In fact, he predicted that Tiger would leave golf at a fairly early age. He saw in his son much more interest, passion and potential than golf alone could fulfill.
It is my hope that maybe Tiger is working on his goodness as a person these days. He is building a relationship with his fiancé¥ that will be the foundation of a good family. He is working to make our communities better places to live in through his involvement in various charities. Tiger Woods may be willing to sacrifice his professional successes, his professional greatness, to strive for goodness as a person.
Imagine that, someone actually working on moving their lives ?from great to good?. If that is what is going on with Tiger, it should be a role model for all of us. I think we sell ourselves short when we only celebrate the great among us. It is much more important for humanity to spend more time celebrating the good.
Posted June 11, 2004 12:15 PM
Comments
While Tiger's focus on life has changed recently, I believe that there could be another explanation for his decrease in performance. Tiger has been playing golf since he was old enough to hold a club. I remember seeing Tiger hitting golf balls on the Johnny Carson show when he was only about 5 years old. All of this focus on one activity for that long of a time sets someone up for burnout.
Have you ever known someone to get really great grades all their life and then get to College only to flunk out. Probably so, and why not, they are tired of working so hard to get those grades. All they have ever known or done is study and they are burnt out.
Tiger's decrease in performance is probably due to a complicated mix of many factors, but I propose that this would have happeded to Tiger even if he had not gotten engaged to that beautiful Swedish girl. However, that sure does make for a great excuse to lose a stroke or two.
Posted by: Ben Reed at June 14, 2004 12:36 PM
I don't know that much about golf, but after reading these comments I wondered whether Tiger's career might end up paralleling that of Andre Agassi, the tennis legend. I agree with the comment that Tiger may simply have burned out. I also agree that it is admirable if Tiger's decline has been due to his spending more time with charities and those close to him. However, after noticing the disappointment in Tiger's eyes at the two recent majors,I doubt whether Tiger will be satisfied with simply being good. Who is to say Tiger's career might not follow a "great to good to great to good model?" He is only 28. Surely, he has at least 11-12 more years in which he will have the physical capability to compete at the top level of golf.
Take Agassi for example. He burst onto the tennis scene as a teenager. Soon after, he competed in a couple of French Open finals, and he eventually won his first major title at Wimbledon. As his career moved on, he routinely pulled "disappearing acts" where he seemed to lose interest in tennis for a year or two. You would hear of how he lost to some guy ranked #300 in the world. Commentators, like McEnroe, would shake their heads and lament, "What a waste of great talent." Just when everyone had written him off, Agassi would resurrect his career with a great win at the US Open or French Open.
Although Agassi now appears to be in the twilight of his career, the lessons from his most recent comeback (which started at the French open a few years ago) may be something Tiger will eventually want to emulate. Agassi, realizing that his competition was much younger, committed himself to becoming the fittest player he could be. He also humbled himself and hired one of the best coaches in the game. At Grand Slams, over the last few years, he has consistently reached the latter stages of the tournaments. It seems that he now never loses because he isn't in top form; he usually loses because his opponent has given a tremendous performance. Even his "disappearances" from the game seem to have benefitted him; his contemporaries (Sampras, Chang, and Courier) have retired much earlier.
Although Tiger is to be commended for his charity work and should enjoy his fiancee, I think he really does have a period of "greatness" left in him. Like Agassi, he's going to do what it takes to win. Whether he needs to find another pair of eyes to examine his game or needs to change clubs, Tiger is going to solve the dilemma. Maybe he will win when the "What's wrong with Tiger?" media scrutiny dies down. Maybe he just needs a little time away from being great. I would suggest that Mickelson, Els, and Singh should enjoy Tiger's "vacation" while it lasts.
Posted by: Kyle White at June 24, 2004 01:48 PM
This blog reminds me of the fate of many child prodigies in music, which is my own field of experience. It is very common for children who exhibit "genius" ability early on to experience problems in late adolescence or adulthood, or to simply choose to drop out of the spotlight. They often resent having missed the "normal" lives that they see their peers living, or simply cannot cope long term with the surreal quality of life that results from being constantly scrutinized by the public. Of course, it isn't just music. We can all cite young performers in other fields, including academics, who "drop out" of the spotlight in young adulthood. The pressure really is awful, and not many can cope successfully long term.
It seems strange to us mere mortals, but the baggage that comes with great fame is often too heavy to carry forever - especially when it comes so early in a person's life - before one has developed a secure identity and life philosophy.
I think, too, that there are many, many people among us who are just as bright and talented as Tiger, but whose life circumstances have not caused them to be famous. We do not question their choices, or their peaks and valleys in levels of performance, because to us they seem "normal." They do not have to answer to the public.
Maybe this has nothing to do with Tiger, but surely he needs to have the right to do what he wants with his life. If he has chosen to move from "great to good" - he is indeed a role model for all of us. Fame and fortune alone do little for us as a society (how many of us, if asked to name the person we hold most dear and important, would name a celebrity?), but compassionate people, whether famous or not, show us the path toward real peace and happiness.
Posted by: Cindy at July 14, 2004 10:28 AM
I can relate my basketball career to this story about Tiger. Not to sound concended, but I was a very good basketball player in high school when I committed to play at Belmont. After my senior year, I had shoulder surgery that kept me from playing all summer. So, going into my freshman year of college, I hadn't played in several months, which made it very diffucult. After I finally got back into the swing of thigs, I tore my right ACL with about 2 games left in the season. I was out that whole next summer, and came back my sophomore year and struggled greatly. Finally, the summer after my sophomore year, I was able to play quite a bit and played very well my junior year, only before tearing my left ACL during the last game of the season. Needless to say, after my second ACL repair with several complications along the way, the doctors very highly suggested that I not play ball anymore.
All this to say that, my basketball career was a rollercoaster. For the purposes of this article, it went from "great" to "good," back to "great" before my career ended.
I tell people this alot: I originally chose Belmont for the athletics. It was close to home, my family would be able to watch me play, and they had established a winning program. As it turned out, I received an excellent education that I couldn't be prouder of!
But in the process, I feel I became a much "better" person. As Dr. Cornwall's article states, doesn't Tiger have the right to become a better person!! Fame will only get you so far in this world; you still have to be happy with yourself. I believe through my injuries, I was taught a great deal about life, perseverance, patience, etc.
Granted, I probably can't beat anyone on the basketball court these days, but I learned more about life then I could have ever learned being a star athlete.
Posted by: Raven Teeples at August 5, 2004 11:40 AM
at Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee. He consults with a variety of businesses on start-up and growth related issues, and with larger corporations on re-establishing entrepreneurial cultures within their organizations. Dr. Cornwall's current research interests include entrepreneurial finance and entrepreneurial ethics. He has authored or co-authored four books.
