NYP TV Sports’ Justin Terranova caught up with CBS golf commentator Nick Faldo this week. The topic was the PGA Championship.
Q: What do you think Tiger Woods’ dominating win last week means for him at this week’s PGA Championship at Southern Hills?
A: I think it’s pretty obvious Tiger is in complete control of his game and his emotions right now. The way he won sends a serious message to the rest of the Tour that he has got all parts of his game going. He is certainly coming around since the British Open at Carnoustie and is clearly the favorite this week. The other players know that if Tiger is on form it is a pretty daunting task to try and beat him.
Q: Woods has yet to win a major this year. What improvements have you seen in his game since Carnoustie?
A: His wedge play and all his iron shots have been far more accurate. And the accuracy with his driver has improved dramatically. He is back to the kind of consistency he had earlier in the year with the driver.
Q: Given the fact Tiger was in good position at the Masters and U.S. Open, how surprised were you he didn’t win?
A: He had the unbelievable stat of whenever he got into the lead at a major he won. It was going to happen one day – he couldn’t keep that record going the whole time, but I think now he is swinging much better. Earlier in the year, he had some glaring issues with parts of his game. That is not the case now.
Q: How does Southern Hills set up for Woods?
A: Tiger has the ability to play strategy golf, and it is all about playing safe on this course. The weather is going to be brutal [over 100 degrees every day], and the more greens he hits that’s going to make life so much easier. Any player who tries to scramble in this sort of temperature at a major golf course will have a hard time. Very few people can last when they are scrambling for 72 holes and get away with it.
Q: What are the more challenging parts of Southern Hills and who can provide Tiger a challenge?
A: This course is going to be a real test. It is challenging in every area – difficult tee shots where you have to deal with hanging trees and creeks. The greens are small and undulating, which will lead to a lot of tricky putts. The rough is going to be really deep. Ernie Els’ game has picked up. He seems to have a little more spring in his step, and he has the ability to play safe golf. Justin Rose was very good last week and has had a very good year.
