Brooks: The new Tiger?

[Dan2501]

I think there's a difference between Brooks and the others that showed flashes of brilliance, and it's his mentality. He's so mentally strong, trusts his game, doesn't have any glaring weak areas (his putting is a little streaky but nothing like Rory or DJs) and delivers when the pressure is at its most extreme. His run in the Majors in the last 3-4 years has been nothing short of exceptional, he's not missed a cut in one for 6. I see this continuing for a while yet and will be as close to Tiger as we see for a while in terms of dominance in the big tournaments.

 

[Deleted Member 1156]

Because Tiger's era wasn't just about his domination, it was the way his approach to golf totally redefined the game for everyone who followed.

I'm not disputing that, I'm asking why people are saying we won't see another Tiger for a while. Why a while? It could be next year, year after that some new kid bursts onto the scene. Or Brooks may keep going with his current hit rate in Majors.

 

[azazel]

I'm not disputing that, I'm asking why people are saying we won't see another Tiger for a while. Why a while? It could be next year, year after that some new kid bursts onto the scene. Or Brooks may keep going with his current hit rate in Majors.

Brooks continuing to dominate the majors won't make him another Tiger outwith the dominance aspect. He might well be a prime example of "Tiger golf" in that he's an absolute athlete, hits it a long way and gets the ball in the hole when it matters better than anyone else (currently). "Another Tiger" as someone said upthread, will be the person who finds a new way to play the game which is different to the way the pros currently play it and goes on to make that successful. History would suggest that these things don't happen more often than once every 20-30 years.

Stephen Hendry in snooker is another example of a player who came along and introduced a more aggressive and attacking way of playing which has now become the accepted standard, rather than the old safety first approach.

 

[Deleted Member 1156]

Brooks continuing to dominate the majors won't make him another Tiger outwith the dominance aspect. He might well be a prime example of "Tiger golf" in that he's an absolute athlete, hits it a long way and gets the ball in the hole when it matters better than anyone else (currently). "Another Tiger" as someone said upthread, will be the person who finds a new way to play the game which is different to the way the pros currently play it and goes on to make that successful. History would suggest that these things don't happen more often than once every 20-30 years.

Stephen Hendry in snooker is another example of a player who came along and introduced a more aggressive and attacking way of playing which has now become the accepted standard, rather than the old safety first approach.

Sorry but I have no idea what you are talking about. Golf competitions are decided by who takes the fewest number of shots. Maybe Tiger prepared differently to others which gave him an advantage but everyone has cottoned on to that now and they all hit the gym, have nutritionists, mind coaches etc. It is a much more level playing field so it all comes down to number of shots over 72 holes and if Brooks continues at his current rate then in about 8 years he will surpass Tiger.

 

[garyinderry]

Gary player reckons the next time big move will be when a long driver type player breaks into the pro game and hammers the ball and courses into submission.

Its certainly not out of the question.

 

[Deleted member 21258]

Can I come back to you in 3 years time and let you know

 

[rksquire]

At the point at which he becomes the new 'Tiger', he'll just be Koepka.... it's an aspirational title that when you've had sufficient success you then bypass it, eg Hamilton is not the new Schumacher any longer; Are we in for a period of dominance from him? I don't know.... he's in a purple patch now where he's dismissive of certain things (like practice, pressure, regular events etc.) but at some point he's going to be tested and it's how he handles that - and by that I really mean, does he care enough? He's 29 now so he's no prodigy like Tiger, I don't think he's going to win everytime he tees it up so again not like tiger; He has a laid back attitude that is currently working, but it won't work forever - eg if he misses a few cuts, loses a bit of touch here or there, does he remain so laid back that he doesn't care or does he have the ability to motivate and pressure himself to get back? It's hypothetical of course, if he never has a temporary loss of form then he has nothing to worry about. Interestingly, for someone so good, he possibly has a limited spectrum of shots; I heard his coach on, basically hit driver, find ball and hit again - trying to be more nuanced than that would cause him difficulty. Thankfully he's pretty good with the driver!

 

[USER1999]

He could be one to suffer if / when they limit the technology as a result of the distance report.

 

[Spear-Chucker]

History points towards a trend like that; Hagen, Nelson, Jones, Nicklaus, Tiger etc. but the lines are blurred a little due to circumstances and health. Anomaly’s will pop up though 👍

Why is everyone saying we won't see another Tiger for 'a while'? How long is 'a while'?
There may be some kid who bursts through Q school at the end of the year who goes on to dominate, we just don't know.

 

[azazel]

Sorry but I have no idea what you are talking about. Golf competitions are decided by who takes the fewest number of shots. Maybe Tiger prepared differently to others which gave him an advantage but everyone has cottoned on to that now and they all hit the gym, have nutritionists, mind coaches etc. It is a much more level playing field so it all comes down to number of shots over 72 holes and if Brooks continues at his current rate then in about 8 years he will surpass Tiger.

I'm perhaps not explaining myself very well so I'll try again.

Tiger's greatness, for me, isn't just the fact that he won (wins) so much. Before Tiger, golfers of all types were winning competitions and the difference between big hitters and short hitters was only really a few yards. Tiger changed all that when he came on the scene by hitting the ball further than anyone, spending as much time in the gym as he did on the range etc. He set the template that Rory, DJ, Koepka etc all followed. He literally changed the way the game is played, hence why lengthening courses to cope with the big hitters was originally nicknamed "Tiger-proofing".

There's also the exposure and therefore money that Tiger brought to the sport in a way that literally no-one else ever has.

So, in my opinion, while someone like Koepka may dominate the tours and majors for a few years, it'll be a long time before we see a literal game-changer coming through as history suggests they're few and far between. For that reason, Kopeka (as per the original post) won't be the "new Tiger".

Edited to add the following link, which is a longer but perhaps more precise version of what I'm trying to say: https://www.stgeorgesgolf.com/Blog/May_2018/tiger-woods-effect.aspx

 

[Patster1969]

Also, the other thing that Tiger did that no-one else has ever done or will likely do again is to bring the sport to the masses regardless of class or colour - just to see the amount of people that follow him around at every tournament, even when he was playing badly shows that he was a once in a lifetime type player.
I like Brooks as a player and like the fact that he cut his teeth on the European tour but he just wouldn't have that extra bit of stardust that Tiger did - no-one was able to hit the ball the distances he did, had the creativity that he did, putt like he did or had the ability to grind it out & get the ball in the hole, even if he was only playing his C game. I think Brooks can go on & win more majors though.

 

[Pin-seeker]

Gary player reckons the next time big move will be when a long driver type player breaks into the pro game and hammers the ball and courses into submission.

Its certainly not out of the question.

I don’t agree with that.
Look at how many times they hit the ball out of the grid when going for it.
If Koepka,Rory,Dj or any of the others gave it 100% with the drivers that the long drive champs use they’d be up there with them.

 

[Dasit]

Brooks had a great few years, shining when the courses are really tough, for example US Opens.

But over the next 10 years if i had to bet who will have the most success, it would still be Rory. He dominates tee to green strokes gained stats like Tiger did back at his peak, long term this converts to lots of wins

 

[Orikoru]

I think he's started a bit late to catch Tiger's major record hasn't he? Sure Tiger had about 8 by Brooks' current age. He is far an away the best golfer right now, we'll just need to see how long this period extends now. I think as was said above, Brooks may lack the passion for the game that Tiger had/has. At some stage I can see him getting bored of even winning majors and kind of easing off in his mid 30s. He's certainly a dominant force right now though.

 

[Papas1982]

Brooks had a great few years, shining when the courses are really tough, for example US Opens.

But over the next 10 years if i had to bet who will have the most success, it would still be Rory. He dominates tee to green strokes gained stats like Tiger did back at his peak, long term this converts to lots of wins

The problem is, Tiger converted all those stats with putting that was better than anyone else managed too. Rory maybe has one or two rounds a year where he really nails his putts. Would had two or three rounds a comp.

It’s cliche, but we all know “drive for show”

 

[Dan2501]

Rory's not that dominant in the tee-to-green stats. This year is the first he's led it since 2014.

 

[Deleted Member 1156]

It’s cliche, but we all know “drive for show”

Sorry but I don't think we have ever met before........ 🤣

 

[GB72]

Tiger was/is more than just about the winning, he became a cultural phenomenon and an icon beyond just golf.

When the average person in the street who has no idea about golf knows who Brooks is, when kids pick up clubs and pretend to be him then he has stepped up towards the level of Tiger. Until then he will just be another exceptionally good golfer.

 

[Deleted member 1147]

Well he’s already 29, has 4 majors, 1 WGC & 2 PGA tour wins.
So no, he’s nowhere near being the new Tiger!

 

[Dan2501]

The problem is, Tiger converted all those stats with putting that was better than anyone else managed too. Rory maybe has one or two rounds a year where he really nails his putts. Would had two or three rounds a comp.

It’s cliche, but we all know “drive for show”

Driving is way more than "for show" on the PGA Tour. These are the best 5 in SG Off the Tee with their Fed-Ex ranking in brackets:

1. Rory McIlroy (2)
2. Dustin Johnson (7)
3. Bubba Watson (68)
4. Jon Rahm (9)
5. Keith Mitchell (35)

And it's a similar story when you look at SG Tee-to-Green:

1. Rory McIlroy (2)
2. Justin Thomas (16)
3. Patrick Cantlay (6)
4. Dustin Johnson (7)
5. Hideki Matsuyama (29)

Driving it well = money on the PGA Tour, especially when compared to putting, where only 1 guy in the top 10 (Justin Rose) is making it to East Lake at the minute.