What do you think about Tiger Woods and his prime years? Unstoppable, intimidating, and whatnot. Right? His 82 PGA Tour wins and 15 major victories are enough to explain how dominant he was. But that doesn’t explain everything about his era. The pressure Woods exerted on other golfers while playing on the greens should also be discussed. Imagine having paired up with someone who is regarded as the GOAT. As per recent revelations, Adam Scott was one of probably many who was largely intimidated by Woods.
Recently, Scott was interviewed by Claire Rogers on The Scoop. In the video, the former #1 discussed many things, including his streak of wearing beige on the course, the story behind his most-worn Rolex, and his experience of playing alongside Tiger Woods during his prime. Rogers asked Scott about his favorite golfer to be paired up with and he named Earnie Els. He praised Els for being warm, and friendly, but on the contrary, his experience with Woods was nothing like this.
While talking about Woods, Adam Scott said, “Playing with Tiger early in my career was just so difficult.” The 44-year-old then explained why it was so. “He was incredible, uh, intimidating; the crowd was moving, and I actually had to not watch him play when I played with him,” said Scott. The Australian used this trick to avoid the great influence that Tiger Woods generated on the greens, referring to Woods’ impact as “Tiger mania.”
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“I’d literally turned my back,” said the 14-time PGA Tour winner to avoid Woods’s impact on his game. Scott often shot a 76 when playing alongside Woods, mostly due to the pressure he felt on his shoulders. Considering that, he came up with this trick to be able to focus on his own game. In the early days, Woods’s dominance was evident, as there wasn’t a year from 1996 to 2009 where he hadn’t won a tournament.
Did Tiger Woods just intimidate Adam Scott into adopting a bizarre habit? React!
USA Today via Reuters
Aug 15, 2021; Greensboro, North Carolina, USA; Adam Scott reacts to missing a birdie putt on the first playoff hole during the final round of the Wyndham Championship golf tournament. Mandatory Credit: Rob Kinnan-USA TODAY Sports
They first met in the gym at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, where Woods would sometimes work out, and Scott was a student-athlete there. However, they didn’t get to know each other during that time. But after these years, Adam Scott and Tiger Woods have faced each other numerous times. While it’s true that playing under pressure with Woods present was challenging for Scott, there was a time when the 15-time major champion also managed to confuse him.
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Tiger Woods once made Adam Scott second-guess his choice of iron
Scott turned pro in 2000, and the story is from that year’s Open Championship, which was his first major as a pro. At the tournament, Adam Scott was the only golfer who had no bogeys through 10 holes. He was paired with Woods, David Duval, and Mark O’Meara and saw Woods hit a pure 4-iron into the green; meanwhile, he had a 5-iron in his hand, and that’s when Scott second-guessed himself.
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“If Woods, one of the best ball-strikers and longest players on the planet, is hitting 4-iron from there, could Scott get a 5-iron on from a similar spot?” thought Scott. Witnessing this, Woods walked up to him and said, “You should never look at my bag.” Although Adam Scott didn’t win any tournaments in his rookie year, he sure got a glimpse of what Tiger Woods was capable of.
What do you think of the pressure Adam Scott felt from Tiger Woods? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below!
