In some ways it was like watching vintage Tiger yesterday.... hit it all over the course, still shoots a great number.
Listening to Nick Faldo on the Dan Patrick show this morning, Faldo said that a reliable source (a fellow green jacket winner - as far as he would go on disclosing the source) told him that Tiger truly believed he would never play again. "I don't think I'll ever play again," the source said Tiger told him. This was back when Tiger was a vice captain back in 2016 RC and seen gingerly getting in and out of the golf cart provided to him. He said that Tiger told him the pain was so chronic that he couldn't sleep at night and that he honestly believed his playing days were over.
So where Tiger went off the "vintage" Tiger script yesterday after the round, as the old Tiger would never be content with coming up just short and feeling disgusted, was just seeming so happy with finishing a close second and not only playing again - but being competitive again... I think that provided some perspective regarding where he was not that long ago and where he found himself yesterday evening, and the joy he showed because he almost got it done.
It really was fun to watch him hanging in there and trying to channel some of the fight and excitement we'd not seen in a long time from him.
But it shouldn't overshadow just how unflappable Brooks was, yet again, in another big tournament. And it's not just his power. It's also because he makes good decisions, manages his game, manages his emotions, and he's also a very good putter.
There was a moment Sunday when he went bogey-bogey on the 4th and 5th holes to go 1-over on the day. He could've let that get to him and cause him to force the issue, create more mistakes, allow the round to deteriorate. Yet he responded by birdieing 3 of the next 4 holes, ending up finishing the front nine 2-under.
He's won 3 of the last 6 majors. That's impressive.