NORTON, Mass. — When Tiger Woods says his goal in every event he enters is to emerge victorious, he means it — even if it’s a fun round of Putt-Putt with his kids.
"We had a good little time," Woods said during a video conference on Monday promoting next month’s Deutsche Bank Championship, an event the formerly top-ranked player in the world won in 2006 but which he may not qualify for this year. "We toured a little bit and even played a little Putt-Putt, which I won every single time."
To hear Woods talk about the week-long vacation he took with girlfriend Lindsey Vonn and his two children following his 69th-place finish at the British Open, a listener could have mistaken son Charlie for one of the PGA Tour’s young guns partially responsible for putting an end to the Tiger era, as Brandel Chamblee claimed last week.
"I've got a little five-year-old right now that is really pushing me pretty hard. He wants to beat me in everything," said Woods. "And that said, I was able to kick his butt in Putt-Putt. I've shown him how to get it done."
With "winning" and "winning more" the fuel that sparks the competitive fires in the 38-year-old, injury-plagued, 14-time major winner, Tiger will need strong finishes in the next two weeks if he hopes to make it to TPC Boston in person over Labor Day weekend.
"Being able to prepare and … go out there and get it done," Woods said, "It does feel good. I haven't lost that. I certainly don't foresee that ever happening."
As for his Putt-Putt prowess, if Woods won’t take our suggestion about signing Rory McIlroy’s flat stick guru, Dave Stockton, to Team Tiger, perhaps he can take the confidence he gained in showing Charlie who’s boss onto the greens at Firestone.