Despite pundits calling Tiger Woods’ first major championship victory at the US Masters in 11 years the comeback of the century, I believe it was entirely predictable; hence I’ve talked about it as simply being a matter of time.
That said, the question on everyone’s mind is “How did he do it?”
To answer this question, we need to understand the drivers of performance, which are best explained by way of our Thoughts > Emotions > Actions > Results™ process or ‘TEAR™’ for short. This process explains the sequence of the four elements that govern a person’s performance i.e. that the results a person achieves are governed by the quality of their actions. Their actions are determined by their emotions which, in turn, are governed by what they think. Put simply, what we think determines what we achieve.
The point is, the TEAR™ process is constant hence we need to see the mind as the creator of a person’s results. If we reflect on the correlation between these elements, we can see that Tiger won on the 14th because he thought (Thoughts) like the best golfer in the field. This in turn produced a sense of confidence and courage (Emotions) that allowed him to play (Actions) the way he did. Ultimately, it was his superior actions or performance on the day that produced his emphatic victory (Result).
Although there has been a lot of talk about Tiger’s ongoing injuries, I would argue that the issue that’s plagued him is psychological, rather than physical.
So how did he do it?
Although Tiger was the dominant figure during his reign, he didn’t believe he was the most gifted golfer out there. Instead, the reason he was so successful was because he knew he worked harder than anyone else therefore he believed he was more deserving of wins than anyone else.
The fact is, Tiger knows it isn’t about the talent you have but how you use it. Further to this, he knew the game would never be dominated by the most gifted player, but by the person who worked the hardest. Incidentally, the most gifted athletes tend to win very rarely or at best, occasionally. This is because they tend to rely on their superior skillset to see them through rather than developing the grit and determination required to consistently perform at an optimal level.
To understand Tiger’s comeback, we need to think about the factors that destroyed it. That is, we need to understand why he went from being the most dominant player on the circuit to the dejected golfer the world has witnessed for over a decade.
If we consider the TEAR™ process in conjunction with the Steel Foundation of Performance Model 2™ (i.e. the second layered triangle model), we would realise that his demise was caused by a psychological malfunction that ended the world as he knew it. This meant that his return to his winning ways would come down to ‘when’ he felt worthy of winning another tournament given he’s never lost the Skills, Knowledge or Experience required to do it - as explained in the Steel Foundation of Performance Model 1™ (i.e. the first triangle model that consists of State of Mind, Skills, Knowledge, Experience and Performance). The fact it’s taken Tiger 11 years to achieve this tells us more about the extent of his despair than anything else.
Although I’ve never met Tiger, my advice would have been to forget about trying to regain the god-like stature he enjoyed during his earlier years and instead, focus on his golf. Aspiring to achieve his prior status was always going to be a step too far, however, regaining the mantle of the world’s best golfer was never beyond him providing he had the insight to see it.
In this respect, I would suggest it hasn’t taken him 11 years to get himself back in shape physically, it’s taken him 11 years to not only accept his predicament, but to forgive himself for the suffering he knows he caused for as long as he was punishing himself for the things he has done, he was never going to win.
Feeling unworthy of a win will deny a person the win. Feeling unworthy of success will deny people of success. Feeling unworthy of happiness, health and prosperity will keep people entrapped in a life of misery, ill-health and poverty for we only experience that which we create.
If a person understands performance, they would see that Tiger’s win wasn’t the miracle commentators have called it but a predictable (albeit impressive) outcome due to his need to prove himself. In other words, his win on the course was nothing more than a return to form in his head.
Incidentally, form in this context is not a physical thing but a psychological thing. That is, athletes don’t go in and out of form physically even though they may be fitter and stronger (or injured or injury free) at different times. Instead form is a mental thing. If an athlete is thinking like the best, they will play like the best. If not, no matter how talented they are, they will not get it right. When this occurs, they lose their nerve (confidence) and as a consequence, experience a psychological slump that produces substandard performances which coaches put down to a ‘loss of form’ – think Lydia Ko.
Regarding Lydia, it is, I would suggest, a psychological issue that’s keeping her from performing at her best for the fact is, winning during the early days was always going to be easy with someone of her talent. However, unless she understands the drivers of performance, her ability to get back in front will remain elusive.
Although Tiger’s indiscretions were reckless, the fact he appears to be working through them tells us more about who he is than his dominance in his heyday. Whether he gets back on top will tell us the extent of his recovery although, either way, I for one was pleased to see him win as the sport is infinitely better off with him in contention than floundering on the side line.
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