North: Why won't anyone confront Tiger Woods?
I've been watching golf majors for over half a century. The aura created by a major conjures up images of accomplished golfers at the top of their game, huge crowds on impressive courses, and it's all topped off with a roller coaster of emotions.
It's man against man in the PGA or sometimes just man against the course.
Golf has all the ups and downs of everyday life, and even hackers like me and millions of others get enthralled by the drama and competition.
There's nowhere to hide when playing golf - it's an honest sport although admittedly a little more understanding of the aging process. Other sports heroes get old and we don't get to watch them perform, but golf is more forgiving and we can still turn on the TV and see some of our favorites competing.
It also doesn't matter what your ranking is because any day a golfer competes, he can be terrific or horrible.
The game has no mercy and demands a player to be fully present and really bring it every time. David Duval and John Daly were once great golfers; their lives might be imperfect, but they will always know that at one time they were really good at their craft, and I believe that knowledge instills confidence that remains long after the accolades.
Those two were never close to Tiger Woods and his level, so that's why I'm somewhat befuddled by Tiger's fall and his weakness and the lack of honesty of coverage about it. The media is overrun with apologists who insist he can still do it.
Isn't there someone out there covering the game of golf who will ask Tiger the difficult question?
Other struggling athletes are often confronted by the media, but if Tiger pars the last hole the analysts on TV say something stupid like this might turn it around for Tiger.
Really?
I just want to ask the guy a simple question: "What happened to you, man?"
Has anyone asked him that? Is the media too intimidated by him to ask?
Listen, I know many in the media write all kinds of things, but when it comes to face-to-face confrontation, it's a different story.
Some of them thought that Michelle Wie, the youngest golfer to qualify for the USGA amateur championship, was going to be a sensational pro. And that Martha Burke, the former chair of the National Council of Women's Organization, was going to bring the Masters to its knees. I said both of those predictions were absurd.
A few years ago, I said Tiger would never win another major, and I believe he won't. Hey he was great, but that is in the past. He just isn't the same person and I just want someone to please ask him: "Hey man, what happened to you?"
Program notes:
Follow me on Twitter@ north2north, and listen to Fox Sports Daybreak with Andy Furman and myself from 5-8 a.m. Monday through Friday on Fox Sports radio, and check me out on iHeart radio or Foxsportsradio.com.
• North's column appears each Tuesday and Friday in the Daily Herald, and his video commentary can be found Monday, Wednesday and Thursday at dailyherald.com. For more, visit northtonorth.com.