There's a reason Tiger Woods finished 67th at the British Open. And for once, it appears to be a good thing.
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Ohio.com reported that Woods has been forced to accept a lifestyle change that has affected his golf. But if he can learn to master the change, he can return to competing for majors.
Woods always has been a workout warrior, which helped him make a quick ascension to the world's best golfer and put him in the conversation as best golfer of all time.
According to Ohio.com, he ran 30 miles a week and in 2007 spent four days with a special operations force in Fort Bragg, N.C., going through workouts that included four-mile runs in combat boots.
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But as he body started to break down - he's had three knee surgeries, suffered injuries to both Achilles' heels as well as a bulging disc in 2010 - he refused to slow down his workout regimen.
The March 31 back surgery to repair a pinched nerve was a wakeup call that he had to retrain himself to listen to his body.
"I remember all the early years on tour when I used to run 30 miles a week and just push it, no matter how hurt I was," Woods said, according to Ohio.com. "I would go out there, still logging all the miles and do all the different things and still play tournament golf.
"I was winning, but I didn't realize how much damage I was doing to my body. Now I have to pick my spots when I can and can't push. Now I've got to listen to my therapist and get treatment. When I was younger, I didn't need it. So my knee ached a little bit, 'So what? I'll just run more miles and it will magically go away, just get the endorphins going.' That's no longer the case. Listening to my body, that's one thing I have learned stubbornly over the years."
So in preparation for the British Open, Woods was making the rare concession to shut down his practice if his body wasn't feeling right. That meant he probably lacked the preparation to be a serious contender at Hoylake.
"This is very different than pushing through my knee injuries in the past. I couldn't play through this," Woods said. "There were days when I would go out and practice and 'It's just not quite right; let's get treated, re-evaluate, come back the next day and see where we are.' Next day, felt great, 'Can we go back another 10 yards? Yeah, we can. Perfect.'
"If I wouldn't have listened to my body, I wouldn't have been able to do that. In the past, I probably would have pushed through it and set myself back and then kept pushing harder and harder and harder until stuff breaks."
Do you think Woods can learn to change his workout regimen and still vie to recapture the No. 1 ranking? Comment below or tell us @SportsWN.
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