Is Tiger too flush, too mechanical or just plain lost?

THE excuse at last week’s tournament was that he was hitting it too flush. When this one began, Tiger Woods said he was too mechanical. Let’s try lost.

It’s no longer about playing up to the standard he once set. Since slinking back into the game after a self-inflicted scandal, then struggling with leg injuries, Woods has been competitive on no more than a handful of occasions. He can’t stop spraying his drives, his short game isn’t good enough to save him – especially from greenside bunkers – and he isn’t making putts. In his opening round at the PGA Championship, that totalled up to a seven-over 77.