Commence Sequence 4.0: Tiger Woods Enters New Phase of His Life

With a filing in Bay County Circuit Court in Panama City, Florida, on Monday, Tiger Woods and Elin Nordegren jointly ushered in new phases of their lives - both together and separately.

Elin gave the go-ahead for People magazine to publish teasers from a 19 hour, 4 day interview in which she revealed everything a generic, recently divorced person would say in public. It'll sell magazines, yes, but reveal little because of the existence of a non-disclosure agreement which will prohibit most details not in the public record from seeing the light of day. Rather than craft her own O. Henry-inspired narrative, Elin will let the American public sympathize her plight from supermarket waiting lines and then likely go into some form of seclusion.

Tiger, on the other hand, cannot hide. Though he could retire tomorrow and still be more financially secure than several developing countries, his professional career cannot end. He would fall short of the goal - the reason he turned pro, how he honors his father's life, and became a sporting legend. 

He needs 19 major championships.

This season was supposed to be the year he got blindingly close. Even after the despair of ceding a 54 hole lead to YE Yang at Hazeltine, Tiger still had three major venues to drive his Pavolovian salivation for the number 19. He won half of his 14 at these three places.

Because of an oddball trip to Australia to play the JBWere Masters for a handsome appearance fee, the National Enquirer caught onto Rachel Uchitel in an elevator. The whispers that began in public because of the report lead to a loud conflict in Woods' own home, a crash outside in his car, and the unraveling of his personal life.

It had to have had an impact on Woods' game. How could it not? At a certain point, the number of women who came out for their 15 minutes attached verbally to Tiger's name (as opposed to some other attachment) became unimportant. The marriage was beyond repair for Elin.

On Wednesday, Woods was peppered by a New York Post "reporter" with the same question three times: do you still love Elin? (So were Woods' people: Glenn Greenspan and Mark Steinberg.) While Woods ignored the absurd and rude questioning, he finally admitted what even the most naive of us knew implicitly - the divorce proceedings largely settled by July impacted his on-course performance.

With the signing and submission of those divorce papers, Tiger Woods begins a new stage in his life. By my count, it could be iteration 3.0 or 4.0 depending upon how you count the comeback from knee surgery. Either way, the versions of the Tiger robot were always defined by on course things. He came out out Tour. Then he teamed with Butch. He dropped Harmon for Haney. Clearly defined volumes of Woods' career came from the way he swung the club.

For the first time, an iteration of Tiger's career is not defined by golf. It's defined by his persona life. And it appears that Tiger Woods is not suppressing his emotions. Version 4.0 of the Tigertron has feelings.

They mix from sadness, to shame, to a new sense of focus. After his round today, Woods said, "I just played today. I went out and played made a few tweaks on the range with my swing. Started off warming up not very good at all. I was hitting it all over the lot but made a couple of tweaks and found what I have been working on and I just told Steve I'm going to be committed to it all day."

There appears to even be a feeling of resolution. Woods told Ian O'Connor of ESPN New York that he will "absolutely" reach 19 majors. Not that he is the only one believing that, but it has been a long time - seemingly eons away - since that kind of confidence came out of Tiger's mouth or actions.

In today's first round of The Barclays, Woods shot an impressive 65. He started strong out of the gate, like he has in most of the 2010 major championships before fading. While he couldn't maintain the blistering pace, Woods' game plan was solid. He only hit two drivers all day, on 5 and 18. He hit 92% of the fairways - obscene for a guy who couldn't hit a barn just weeks ago. (Insert your Cadillac driving accuracy joke here.)

Perhaps going off with the first group on Thursday for the first time in his career helped. 

Woods looked to be trying to quickly implement suggestions from half-coach Sean Foley and in earnest to make up for some self-imposed lost time this year. Woods was seen on Wednesday tucking a golf glove under his right arm to keep his arms connected. Foley had Woods practicing barefoot at home, in order to inspire better feel and total balance. Woods sorely needed balance - and perspective - which were missing while he was a gigolo of a husband. 

Foley, who could be for Woods as much the Zenmaster that Phil Jackson was for Michael Jordan, emphasizes so much more than mechanics. He seeks to strike balance, increase awareness, and improve his students' lives. It sounds an awful lot like the Buddhism which Woods admitted he had abandoned in recent years.

Balance. Woods had lost it. In a sense, with this recent sequence of events - divorce and sort of hiring Sean Foley, the order still open to conjecture - Woods has recaptured that balance. Yes, it came at tremendous financial cost, a public flogging, and most importantly his family. But there is true value in loss, depravity. It's a tenet of Woods' faith.

Control. Tiger has been notorious for his micromanagement. The details - down to the blade of grass beneath his feet - matter. Since November, Woods has lacked much influence over his life, and it carried over to his golf game. Today was different and Woods made it clear that helped him.

"It feels good to be able to control my ball all day like this. I haven't done that."

Replace "ball" with "life" and the quote still is appropriate.

About his swing tactics, Woods seemed in limbo, saying, "I need to wrap my head around having a commitment level going forward with this new change."

The parallel is obvious.

One good round in an event where Woods simply has to finish top fifty or better to play next week is no indicator of future performance. Tomorrow, Woods could backpedal as he has so many times this year. A step forward and three back. If he surges forward again on Friday, it could inspire borderline hero worship like following his great stretch of six holes in the third round of the US Open.

If Tiger succeeds in these final events of 2010 - maybe even wins one or two - he won't be back, so to speak. A man can never go home again, particularly to a broken one. But Woods can evolve. He can learn a lifetime of lessons from these past mistakes, vow to never do them again, and hope to move on with his life.