How do you perform well on a course that you’ve never played? That was the question presented to Tiger Woods as he prepared for the British Open Championship on the historic Royal Portrush course in Northern Ireland.
Photo from Steve Grant
Woods has been a bit of a ghost on the PGA Tour this season, only playing in three tournaments since his win at the 2019 Masters. So the lack of tournament participation raised some eyebrows as Woods attempted to get his game in shape for the 2019 British Open.
Learning The Course
Tiger’s first step in preparing for the tournament at Royal Portrush was to play the course. After a month-long break, Woods started his preparation for the British Open with a full practice round alongside his caddy, Joe LaCava.
Throughout the practice round, Woods and LaCava made notes of the enormous sand dunes that line the layout at Royal Portrush. Throughout the practice round, Woods notated his yardage book that he would use during the tournament to assure that he had the right distance for the shots he would hope to play.
When asked about his reaction after playing the course for the first time, Woods said Royal Portrush had “a lot of movement.” He also shared his frustration that with the wind coming from the south over the first two days of the British Open, that a lot of the shots he hit in the practice round were “useless,” because the lines to the green will be different.
Preparing For A Major Championship
Before he played his first practice round at Royal Portrush, Woods began to get ready for the British Open weeks in advance. After the U.S. Open, Woods took his family on a two-week vacation and left the clubs at home, allowing his body a chance to recover and recuperate from the wear and tear of professional golf.
When he started his prep work for the British, Woods started with a familiar routine to get his surgically repaired back into shape. “I do the same thing,” Woods told the media. “I start from the green back. I putt, chip, pitch, short irons, mid-irons, long irons, woods. And then eventually play. Nothing has changed. The only difference is that there are certain days I can do a little more than others.”
Warming Up For His Round
Woods always begins his pre-round warm-up on the putting green. Taking six golf balls, Tiger runs through a series of putting drills that helps with alignment and squaring the clubface through impact.
Once he completes a handful of putts of over 30 feet, Woods moves to the chipping green for a few sets of chips, high flop shots, and low pitches.
After the short game work concludes, Woods hydrates with some water and makes his way to the driving range. Starting with a wedge, Tiger dials in shots from roughly 100 yards in length. After a handful of swings with the wedge, Woods works up to repetitions with a mid-iron, then a long iron.
Now comes time to break out the fairway wood and then the driver. Woods like to shape his shots during this section, hitting a variety of draws, then cut shots that result in a soft, high fade.
After his range work ends, Woods completes his warm-up with more putting, then makes his way to the first tee.
