Frustrated Rory McIroy says ‘decision-making was terrible'

PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. – Clearly he’s not the 2000 version of Tiger Woods. But that doesn’t mean the 81-time PGA TOUR winner can’t claim the U.S. Open at Pebble Beach for a second time. Woods demolished the field 19 years ago on the iconic California coastal masterpiece, winning by 15 shots. He was the only player under par for the championship… some 12-under. It was an old-fashioned carve up of the course and of his competitors. Back then it was brawn supported by brain. Now the brain takes the top notch, but the brawn is still there despite back-fusion surgery. Woods believes the advances in technology have allowed his aging body to still get to the places at Pebble he did in 2000. Of course, the difference this time around is the rest of the field can get there too. “It’s not the same body that I had back in 2000. I don’t think any of us have the same body we had 19 years ago,â€� Woods said. Related: Tee times | Tiger’s Jedi mind tricks at 2000 U.S. Open | Koepka eyes three-peat | Power Rankings “The golf ball is going further than it did back in 2000, I’m slower than I was in 2000. Apples to oranges, I guess you could say. I am about the same distance. And so the golf course really doesn’t play that much differently for me. “It’s just a matter of putting the ball in the right spots. I missed the ball in the correct spots (in 2000)… you look at all my angles. I did not hit every green. I did not hit every fairway, but I always had the proper angle. And gave me the best chance to get up-and-down. I poured everything in. Hopefully I can have one of those weeks on the greens again.â€� Woods has proven he can win in his 40s. Since his return from the fourth back surgery, he has won the TOUR Championship and of course his 15th major championship at the Masters. He’s had great success on poa annua greens in his career – particularly at Torrey Pines, but this season, to an extent, they’ve had his number. Woods has had 20 three-putts in 26 rounds this season with his worst weeks coming at the Genesis Open, the World Golf Championships – Mexico Championship and the PGA Championship. Those venues had poa greens. He knows the small putting surfaces at Pebble will once again be key. As such, he was putting extra practice work in and had putting coach Matt Killen in attendance. “Putting on poa is very different than putting on bent. And so just trying to make sure that I’m rolling the ball like I need to for poa,â€� Woods explained. “It doesn’t take much to get off line on poa. It gets a little bumpy, you happen to catch those little seed heads start popping up, bent sits down, poa perks up. And good putts look like they should go in, don’t go in. And you may pull one or push one that happens to bounce back in the hole. “The trick to putting on poa is to make sure you’re always below the hole. If you’re putting downhill, it’s like a Plinko effect, you’re going to go every which way. The key is to be below the hole where you can take low lines and try and take the bumpiness out of play.â€� It’s unlikely Woods will win by 15 shots again, but if he masters the greens the record tying 82nd TOUR win is certainly in play. “I feel like I’m trending in the right direction,â€� he smiled.

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KAPALUA, Hawaii - Ever wonder what it's like to have a putt to win the FedExCup, THE PLAYERS Championship, or a major? Or wanted to know how the body reacts to a putt to make a cut? Soon, you will be able to see such data from PGA TOUR players. This week, WHOOP was named the Official Fitness Wearable of the PGA TOUR. This new partnership includes the WHOOP Live for Charity initiative, which will highlight player biometric data during defining moments throughout the season. Players featured in WHOOP Live for Charity videos and social content will receive a $10,000 contribution to the charity of their choice on behalf of WHOOP and the TOUR. Fans can follow these moments at #WHOOPLIVE beginning in 2021. "I really like looking (at my WHOOP data) after tournaments to see what my heart rate was like," said Justin Thomas. "I can get a specific look and be like, ‘Why did it go from 110 to 140? What was going on?" Last year's Sentry Tournament of Champions, which Thomas won in a three-way playoff over Xander Schauffele and Patrick Reed, provides an example of what is possible under the WHOOP Live for Charity Initiative. According to WHOOP data, Thomas' average heart rate during the final round at Kapalua was 114 beats per minute. It spiked at 154 bpm, likely during the tournament's stressful conclusion. The WHOOP Live for Charity content will sync highlights with fluctuations in a player's heart rate. This photo of Thomas' big birdie putt in his playoff with Collin Morikawa at the Workday Charity Open provides another example of how WHOOP data can illustrate how players' biometric data changes during a tournament's closing holes. Heart rate is hardly the only metric WHOOP uses to help people personalize their workouts, recovery and sleep patterns. Many fitness wearables track heart rate, steps or calories. WHOOP tracks metrics like heart rate variability (HRV) and respiratory rate. HRV measures the variance between heart beats to show if the body is ready to perform at optimal levels. "I started wearing WHOOP because I just wanted to know more about my body and myself and how I recover. I just wanted to optimize what I do," said reigning PLAYERS champion Rory McIlroy. "In this day and age in golf, with the technology that's out there, everyone is closer together. The difference between the No. 1-ranked player in the world and the No. 100 is actually pretty small. I want to do everything I possibly can to get an advantage. For me, WHOOP is one of those things that can give me an advantage." WHOOP lets players know if their body needs more rest or is ready for a strenuous workout. It can also let them know if they're getting the right type of sleep, and how factors like diet can impact the quality of their rest. And in recent times, it has even warned players that they may have been infected with COVID-19. "So much of what's powerful about technology is it can connect everyone on this planet," WHOOP CEO Will Ahmed told PGATOUR.COM. "And you have up-and-coming golfers and aspirational athletes who can look at their WHOOP data in comparison to the best golfers in the world and that makes the experience even better. "We formalized this partnership for two reasons. First is to improve player health and performance and provide as much data as we can to the players to help them understand their bodies. And the second is to produce WHOOP Live which will bring physiological data to fans. I think this is really innovative and first of its kind - the fact you will see heart rate and other data on top of replays and television broadcasts. It's really exciting and it's a formula that could be the future for sports broadly. When you see some of the highlights with that data on top you as a fan feel something, you feel closer connection to the player and what they just experienced." Last summer, upon the TOUR's Return to Golf, over 1,000 WHOOP Straps were distributed for players, caddies and other essential personnel at PGA TOUR, Korn Ferry Tour and PGA TOUR Champions events, with accompanying membership for health monitoring. "I don't take it off, ever," Thomas said. "More so at the beginning, learning what's better for me and what helps me sleep and what helps me recover better. Now I've worn it long enough that I know. It's just part of my life, I don't even notice I have it on, but I still look at it every day. "It's more diet and eating close to bed, what you're eating, how that helps you sleep. It's a lot of little things and experimenting. I'm willing to make sacrifices in my life if it makes me feel better, play better, perform better." Thomas stresses that every person will have a different learning experience. For example, using melatonin to sleep can make him feel groggy but may be helpful to others. Thomas has also noticed his recovery is better when he drinks more water. "What works for Rory doesn't work for me, what works for me doesn't work for him, doesn't work for you, doesn't work for everybody," Thomas said. "I wanted to figure out what was good for me, and if I'm going into the weekend of The Masters and I'm playing really well and I have a three-shot lead, I need to know what I need to do this afternoon, tonight, before bed to where I feel like I'm going to sleep my best. If you can control what you can control, at least it gives you a better probability for what you want to achieve." The WHOOP isn't just for the TOUR's younger set. Stewart Cink, who recently won the Safeway Open at age 47-years old, has used one. "I think most everybody out on TOUR is using WHOOP. There’s a couple of things that I might just pay closer attention to, like the recovery is important nowadays. I’m still trying to figure out exactly the best way for me to recover," Cink says. "I mean it’s so much more than just getting the eight hours of sleep, it’s a little different and it’s pretty accurate. It’s a neat tool and I enjoy learning a little bit about myself and the way my body sort of physiologically goes through the day and recovers and exerts itself."

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