During his heyday, Tiger Woods rarely went weeks without winning on the PGA Tour, so a two-year barren run for the 15-time major winner was viewed as a severe drop in performance.
In the early 2000s, the former world number one made winning look straightforward. In 2000, Woods won the US Open, Open Championship and PGA Championship. Woods then completed the ‘Tiger Slam’ at the 2001 Masters Tournament.
Alongside His stunning performances in the majors, Woods regularly won PGA Tour events. He won the Bay Hill Invitational in 2000, 2001, and 2003. The American also had plenty of success at Torrey Pines, home of the Farmers Insurance Open and previously the Buick Invitational.
However, Woods’ winning habit slowed down after 2009. Well-documented personal and injury issues blighted his progress.
Arnold Palmer’s advice for Tiger Woods
After winning five times in 2013, Woods went winless until the 2018 Tour Championship at East Lake. Two years into his barren streak, before the 2015 Arnold Palmer Invitational, Palmer was asked if he had any advice for Woods.
“Well, Tiger is—I’ve known him since he was three feet high—and he’s a great player. Very talented young kid with his father instructing him. For you or me to tell Tiger what he could do, there’s only one thing I can say, and that’s practice,” Palmer said.
“To regain the confidence that he had when he was starting out. That’s what made him what he is and that’s the way he’ll get it back. Just regain confidence and ability to hit the golf ball. I think the one thing Tiger did, and this is an opinion I haven’t given to anybody, is he should do what he thinks he should do with his game. He should find a coach that he has confidence in and go work on his game, and that’s my best advice.”
- READ MORE: How many tournaments Tiger Woods is now expected to start in over 2025 according to Alan Shipnuck
Tiger Woods’ 2015 PGA Tour record
2015 was a wholly forgettable year for Woods. Of the 11 events he played, the five-time Masters champ finished in the top ten once.
Woods started his season at the WM Phoenix Open, where he missed the cut (13 over) before withdrawing from the Farmers Insurance Open. Woods then finished T17 at The Masters before shooting the worst score of his PGA Tour career at Jack Nicklaus’ Memorial Tournament.
Tiger then missed cuts at the PGA Championship and Open Championship before finally landing a top ten at the Wyndham Championship (13 under). Woods played just one event in 2016 before returning to top form in the 2018 PGA Tour season. Of course, 2019 was the year Woods clinched his 15th major win at Augusta National.
Receive exclusive golf news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
