The Ryder Cup:
I wasn't playing down the effort at all!!! I was saying that many commentators, especially Americans find it difficult to understand how and why the Europeans can act as a team. I am full of admiration and praise for our Ryder Cup team, believe me I thought the last Ryder Cup was incredible to watch, and the scenes of Darren Clarke moved me to tears.
Woods at Carnoustie:
Well, I haven't been looking at the online coverage, I've been watching it live on the TV - the coverage must be different, if they were saying he was making a challenge to Garcia online then they were wrong, I thought the television coverage was superb and gave an accurate interpretation of Woods' round, where he struggled but also played some magnificent golf. If you haven't been watching it on TV, you can't judge how much he is being shown on the TV.
As to your second point, I really think you are underestimating the importance to Woods. Just because he is not right up there at present doesn't mean a) that they aren't interested and B) that he won't be up there shortly. Again, I'm not sure how much coverage the online commentry was giving him, but do you know how much the TV coverage was giving him? It was proportionate I felt. There was more coverage of Strickler, who played a superb round, but when Woods showed his class, they showed the shot. Being the World No. 1 that was right.
I meant have a guy watching him, analyising every movement when really there isn't allot of point because it is simply overkill
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Believe me, if you have seen
any of Formula 1 this season, you would not believe the amount of attention that Hamilton has received. Yes, he is British, and yes he is an incredibly rookie, but for ITV, Alonso might not even exist on the same team, and you hadn't seen OR heard about Räikkönen until he won a couple of weeks ago! That is over analysis and overkill - showing Woods because he's the best in the World, is not.
'Smacked-Face':
Woods appreciates the crowd as much as he needs to. He tips his hat, raises his club or gives a smile, but why does he need to do anything else? He's still in the middle of his competition - if someone wants to react like Jimenez on the Par 3 and jest with the crowd then that's fine, but it doesn't mean that Woods has to do it. I made the example of Vaughn not smiling at 300-1 because that is not a winning situation, and I
very much doubt there was much smiling and joking at 2-0 down in the Ashes and 300-1. Woods isn't in a winning situation either, so why should he react like he's relaxed? He wants to win, and he's not doing so at the moment.
Also, if you manage to watch some of the coverage later, see how Woods reacts when he accidently hits the spectator on a wild shot. You might change your mind.
At the end of the day, I appreciate that Woods is a very high calbre player and brings in allot of money, but the man is just that at the end of the day: a man. He is fallible, he has faults just like everyone else, he makes mistakes and he shouldn't deserve special treatment because of that.
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This is where you are completely wrong. You are misunderstanding the fact that Woods has
dominated everything about this sport for at least 15 years. Dominated. In terms of revenue, sponsership, bringing players to the game, development of technology, development of his swing, pure results! No-one is denying that he has faults, as the Masters and the last 3 days have proved, and he doesn't win every tournament... it's simply the fact that, if he doesn't play at a tournament, the TV camera's don't turn up. It's a phenomenon probably unlike anything that exists in the World today in other sports; the All-Blacks, the Australians at Cricket, Brazil at football, however good they have been, they haven't dominated as he has.
As for your comments about me being touchy about comments on Woods - please, be my guest. Although I'm a fan I would never say he deserves to be anywhere near the lead today. But, if you watch golf regularly you will understand the impact he has, has had, and deserves. I am not adverse to giving criticism of Woods myself, I just make sure the criticism is correct.