Doon frae Troon
Ryder Cup Winner
I conceded a 3 footer on the 36th hole of a scratch ko final to lose.
It was the right thing to do.
I think Wood did the same.
It was the right thing to do.
I think Wood did the same.
Why did Tiger Woods concede the last hole?
- Thread starter tim4000
- Start date
Why would you ever concede a three-footer to lose? 18ins maybe, but 3ft?
bladeplayer
Money List Winner
How ? 3foot concession to loose ? 2 putts to loose ok pick it up ? 1 putt ? squeaky bum time always missable , unless you have mitagating circumstances
Ethan
Money List Winner
I think Woods was partly in shock and may start to regret the concession. Still, credit where it is due - it sent the right message about the level of sportsmanship needed in the RC.
Durango
Challenge Tour Pro
Nothing to do with sportsmanship. Was sheer and utter embarrassment on Tiger's part.
JustOne
Ryder Cup Winner
I agree, I'm sure some of them would like to have at least drawn..... too bad.
Tiger is a class act..... don't agree with McDowell giving Zach Johnson his one though, not at that stage in the proceedings... on the final green once there's no shame then by all means pick it up.
I'm sure Molinari would have been made to putt if it was the crucial putt that would take the cup AWAY from the Yanks.
dufferman
Journeyman Pro
I don't think there is anything wrong with making your opponent putt out to ensure a won hole is a won hole, but when it doesn't affect the overall result - that the US lost the Ryder Cup - then I can see why Tiger did it. If he had won his previous 3 points maybe he would have wanted to win all 4 even though it might not have affected the score, but when he's had a bad weekend I guess he thought it didn't matter!
Birchy
Money List Winner
I think Tiger conceded it because he thought he would make it and so did I. The pressure was off for it really after Kaymer did enough to retain. I think it would of hurt the yanks even more had they watched that roll in and everyone going mental celebrating again!
They hadn't lost it at that point - just failed to win it back - exactly the same scenario as in 1989 when a tie clearly meant a lot to Kite...
bladeplayer
Money List Winner
Does it matter ? surely USA had one aim . to win the cup .. nothing tiger could do to change that , at these guys level its about winning , glorious losses are meaningless
They might not have lost... just saying that back in 1989 the difference between a draw and a loss clearly meant a lot to at least one US player...
CrapHacker18
Club Champion
I'd like to think that Tiger did it in part because he's now capable of seeing the bigger picture.
I think with age comes wisdom (eventually). He'd just missed his putt, Molinari had already embarrassed himself on the 17th, the Cup had gone. Molinari would (probably??) have got it.
It was the nearest we'll get to Nicklaus in '69.
Hopefully Tiger will go on to become the truly great elder statesman of the game he and the game deserve, and go down in the history books as both the great player he already is, and a great influence on the future of the game.
Now, if we can just get him to smile occasionally..........
I think with age comes wisdom (eventually). He'd just missed his putt, Molinari had already embarrassed himself on the 17th, the Cup had gone. Molinari would (probably??) have got it.
It was the nearest we'll get to Nicklaus in '69.
Hopefully Tiger will go on to become the truly great elder statesman of the game he and the game deserve, and go down in the history books as both the great player he already is, and a great influence on the future of the game.
Now, if we can just get him to smile occasionally..........
PalaceSi
Newbie
There is a touch on madness going on here about the whole situation. Retaining the cup because its a draw and winning it outright are two massively different things to the players, the fans not to mention the bookies and thousands of people who had bets on a europe win.
Mollinari didn't want to lose the match, didn't want it to finish as a draw, didn't want to go home having won nothing and thats just him let alone all the others. People who expected him to concede Tigers putt are stark raving mad imho. As for Tiger it was a nice but also foolhardy decision and i reckon there are plenty of people pretty upset about it.
Molinari isn't the best with the short stick and could have easily missed meaning the match would have been drawn (assuming Tiger holed his last putt!). If that had been the case then all his team mates many would have been undefeated. Many of them haven't got trophy cabinets packed to the brim so it might just have mattered more to them than him. Fans who stood to win fortunes for betting on a draw lost a fortune and what about the poor bookies!
It might have been a nice gesture for him to make but it had massive consequences for many and in a lot of ways it was outrageously selfish of him to put whatever motives he had over their interests.
A win and a draw are very different, retaining a trophy in the event of a draw and winning it outright are very different and thats what putters, balls and holes are meant to decide.
Also you can concede putts to anyone but you should never ever expect or put pressure on others to concede for you. Putts can and are regularly missed and when the pressures on, they become double hard. Tiger also deprived Mollinari the chance to hole a winning putt that would go down in history for ever. It might have seemed magnanimous but it was not that great for an awful lot of people.
Mollinari didn't want to lose the match, didn't want it to finish as a draw, didn't want to go home having won nothing and thats just him let alone all the others. People who expected him to concede Tigers putt are stark raving mad imho. As for Tiger it was a nice but also foolhardy decision and i reckon there are plenty of people pretty upset about it.
Molinari isn't the best with the short stick and could have easily missed meaning the match would have been drawn (assuming Tiger holed his last putt!). If that had been the case then all his team mates many would have been undefeated. Many of them haven't got trophy cabinets packed to the brim so it might just have mattered more to them than him. Fans who stood to win fortunes for betting on a draw lost a fortune and what about the poor bookies!
It might have been a nice gesture for him to make but it had massive consequences for many and in a lot of ways it was outrageously selfish of him to put whatever motives he had over their interests.
A win and a draw are very different, retaining a trophy in the event of a draw and winning it outright are very different and thats what putters, balls and holes are meant to decide.
Also you can concede putts to anyone but you should never ever expect or put pressure on others to concede for you. Putts can and are regularly missed and when the pressures on, they become double hard. Tiger also deprived Mollinari the chance to hole a winning putt that would go down in history for ever. It might have seemed magnanimous but it was not that great for an awful lot of people.
dufferman
Journeyman Pro
I don't think Tiger was thinking about the bookies when he conceded his putt. Yes, maybe the big celebration played in his mind and he wanted to avoid that. However, I do not think the Americans would have relished a draw, after being 10-4 up late Saturday afternoon. In that respect, draw or lose, it's not a win.
Doon frae Troon
Ryder Cup Winner
We had a great match both played above our expectations.
I was never down in the match and won the 13th to go the dreaded 2 up and 5 to play!!
Square at the last he bombed one down the middle and I hooked into the trees, hacked out clean across the fairway into thick rough then hit a great recovery to the back of the green.
He hit a superb 6 iron to 6 foot past the flag. My long putt lipped the hole and I walked forward to pick his ball up.
I then said knock it in for the glory, meaning to win the final with a great birdie. He casually knocked it nearly 3 foot past and a look of sheer desperation hit his face.
What would you have done in the circumstances?
We were conceding each other 'inside a putter' length puts for the match as we were both good putters.
Sod the gamblers, golf won this time.
louise_a
Money List Winner
I thought at the time that Tiger just wanted to get off the green, I can now see the point of the difference between winning the hole to leave the match 14-14 and losing it to lose the match.
As for the betting side, people place bets knowing things like this can happen, and I am sure that punters bets would never have entered Tiger's mind.
As for the betting side, people place bets knowing things like this can happen, and I am sure that punters bets would never have entered Tiger's mind.
Doon frae Troon
Ryder Cup Winner
sydney greenstreet
Journeyman Pro
Why did he concede the putt ? Probably to remind some about what the Ryder cup stands for in golf, ie fairplay and sportsmanship, I thought it a great gesture from Woods.
CrapHacker18
Club Champion
Tiger is one of the elder statesmen of the American team and is hugely respected in the world of golf. Whenever he is compared with Nicklaus he is always accepted as being potentially comparable on golfing terms. However many people consider Nicklaus to be the all time great because of his respect for the game and his fellow pros. Which is something Tiger has never been accused of having. Until now. With this single act he has started building a reputation which will hopefully continue with him into the history books.
:thup:
