Former golf caddie Michael Collins suspects Tiger Woods could break into the top 20 at the US Open. He indentified two crucial factors which could play into his favour.
Returning to the third major of the year for his first time since 2020, the sports icon has been granted a special exemption allowing him to bypass the qualifying stage.
Although he faced a challenging time at the Masters, ending 16 over, and missed the cut at the PGA Championship,
Collins envisages the conditions at Pinehurst No.2 playing into his hands this week. He was asked about Woods’ chances of a top-20 finish on Pardon My Take.
Collins, now a pundit for ESPN, replied: “This might be the US Open course that he does – are you saying that to me like ‘are you saying there’s a chance’?
If you’re saying it in that sense, is there a chance? Yes.
“Because this is probably, of all the US Open venues, this might be the easiest of the walks. And that’s what it takes for Tiger now, that’s part of the issue. It ain’t the course, it’s the walks. And the stances.
“So when he misses a fairway at Pinehurst, he’s gonna be in native area but he’s not gonna have some jacked up stance like he would’ve at the PGA Championship, like he did at the Masters. That’s the problem.”
Not only does Collins think the walks around the course can benefit Woods’ performance, but he also highlighted the sweltering weather forecast of more than 30 degrees Celsius/over 90 degrees Fahrenheit throughout the four days in North Carolina as “great news” for his prospects, reports the Mirror.
“It’s also a sand-based course so if they get really bad weather and the course gets soft, then of course it’s going to be an issue,” he continued. “But this week too, the temperature looks like it’s going to be hot.
“Great for Tiger Woods and his back. So if he keeps it in play, fairways and greens, yeah. He can hit the shots.” However, Collins rapidly dismissed the idea of a victorious return for Woods. “No, take it easy bro, relax,” he replied.
The three-time US Open champion is set to tee off with 2022 English winner Matt Fitzpatrick and Will Zalatoris on Thursday morning, aiming to complete all 72 holes of a tournament for only the fourt time since November 2020.
Joining him will be his son Charlie, aged 15. Woods said he values his insight about his swing game as no one else has seen him hit more balls.
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Source: Tampa Bay Times
