Can Tiger Go Undefeated?

Some of the more hysterical members of the golf media have been speculating not only on whether Tiger will win the Grand Slam this year—but also whether he will magage to go undefeated.

The answer is a “no” to both, and I predict that the questions will be answered at the Masters. I think another dark horse will win it this year.

But just for amusement, lets take a look at Tiger’s remaining schedule. In addition to the Buick, the Dubai Desert Classic and the Accenture Match Play, which he already has played, Tiger has the following on his schedule:

The Arnold Palmer Invitational
WGC-CA at Doral
The Masters
The US Open
The AT&T National at Congressional
The British Open
The WGC at Bridgestone
The PGA Championship
The Target World Challenge

You can also safely assume that he will play in three or four of the FedEx Cup events: The Barclays, The Deutsche Bank, the BMW Championship and the Tour Championship. (In addition, he’ll appear at the Ryder Cup.) As a member of the PGA Tour, he has to participate in 15 Tour sanctioned events. So he will add as many as three more events which he has not yet announced.

The problem for Tiger is that there’s no breathing room. Every tournament he plays also attracts the other fifty best players in the game. If he has an off week (and EVERYBODY has an off week), and one of the others is hot, then he loses. I am reminded as I write this of the old Highlander movie: “There Can Be Only One!. There’s just one first place in each tournament, and there are a hundred guys who want it.

What he has going for him, though, is that the rest of the Tour is completely intimidated by him. So any time he’s in the hunt, you can be sure that more than a few are going to melt down.

I’d love to hear your predictions. Leave a comment below.