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Tiger Woods May Adopt Steve Stricker-like Schedule

By Kathlene Bissell

PORTRUSH, NORTHERN IRELAND - JULY 16: Tiger Woods of the United States speaks to the media during a press conference during a practice round prior to the 148th Open Championship held on the Dunluce Links at Royal Portrush Golf Club on July 16, 2019 in Portrush, United Kingdom. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
PORTRUSH, NORTHERN IRELAND - JULY 16: Tiger Woods of the United States speaks to the media during a press conference during a practice round prior to the 148th Open Championship held on the Dunluce Links at Royal Portrush Golf Club on July 16, 2019 in Portrush, United Kingdom. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images) /
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In 2013, Steve Stricker declared that he would be playing fewer PGA Tour events. His ideal number was 11 or 12, tops. Tiger Woods may be planning to do the same thing.

After this week’s British Open, it appears that Tiger Woods is getting ready to follow Stricker’s lead and shrink his schedule.

In Stricker’s case, part of the reason may have been a back issue that came up that year at the Tournament of Champions in Hawaii. But at the WGC Accenture Match Play in 2013, he said had been thinking about it for a while.

"“I’m playing 11 events. I’m probably not going to play the Playoffs at the end of the year,” he said to media at the time. “I turned 46 this week. I just feel like it’s time to stay home, and that, too, takes some of the pressure off, too. I want to play well, and I want to win, and I want to keep moving on, and I’m a competitor and I want to do well. So, I feel like I can do both.”"

Though Stricker said he wasn’t playing the FedEx Playoffs that year, he did. He went all the way through the Tour Championship. The next season, 2014, he didn’t.

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During the television coverage of the British Open, it was announced that Woods will play the two FedEx Playoff events and the Tour Championship. That’s it for this season. He won’t get to the typical 15 plus events.

According to two communications people from the PGA Tour (who were kind enough to respond after the end of work on Friday), Woods is in a different category, similar to Stricker, where he can play in fewer PGA Tour events.

Stricker, they indicated, falls into a veterans’ category. In addition, he is exempt on the PGA Tour based on lifetime earnings.

Woods’ case, they indicated, is similar. According to the Tour, Woods can follow the Steve Stricker example and play a lesser number, but he relinquishes his voting rights for things like Player of the Year.

There’s no guarantee that Woods will maintain his status for the WGC events if his world ranking falls too far. But that’s not likely to happen until more than a year from now since the rankings are based on the last two years of play and other mysterious things that the rankings gurus never explain.

Several elite players like Davis Love III, have what is called a lifetime exemption on the PGA Tour. Love has earned that with 20 victories. He can enter any PGA Tour event he wants to, except invitationals, WGC events and events like the Tournament of Champions where you have to have won to get there.

Hale Irwin, another lifetime category player with 20 PGA Tour victories, probably isn’t going to enter the Honda Classic next winter. He’s 74 and doesn’t want to go up against the 20-somethings. But Davis Love III might enter the RBC Heritage next spring. He’s won it five times.

Currently, Woods has 81 victories, four times the PGA Tour lifetime requirement. Like Love, he can enter any PGA Tour event that’s not a WGC and not an invitational and not winner only. Jack Nicklaus has that same status, as did the late Arnold Palmer.

Woods’ most recent exemption is based on winning the Masters, and that’s good for some time to come. But should he need another exemption for the PGA Tour, he has it in reserve.

So, while others may have to play 15 events or 25 events, because of his success, because of his victory total, Tiger Woods has earned the right to play fewer tournaments and still be a PGA Tour player. (I say good call, PGA Tour.)

Woods doesn’t believe a shorter schedule means that he’s riding into the sunset. Far from it.

"“I’m going to have my hot weeks. I’m going to be there in contention with a chance to win, and I will win tournaments,” Woods insisted in a media interview Friday after the second round at the British Open. “But there are times when I’m just not going to be there. And that wasn’t the case 20-some-odd years ago. I had a different body and I was able to be a little bit more consistent.”"

What that means for golf fans is it’s important to enjoy what we will now call the “Woods Events.” The first three of these must-see tournaments are this August and include the two FedEx Playoff tournaments and the Tour Championship. After that, Tiger Woods may not play after the Hero World Challenge. It’s undecided whether he will be a playing captain at the Presidents Cup.

Next. British Open: Shane Lowry authors one of the most dominant majors ever. dark

Stay tuned.

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