Skip to main content
SI

Tiger talk shows golf is latest sport troubled by Mike Tyson Syndrome

Smith and Jones tied for lead in Cat Food Open But then, in more detail, the larger shadow story reads: Tiger putter falters, trails by 12 strokes Golf has
Frank Deford|
Tiger talk shows golf is latest sport troubled by Mike Tyson Syndrome
Tiger talk shows golf is latest sport troubled by Mike Tyson Syndrome

Smith and Jones tied for lead in Cat Food Open

But then, in more detail, the larger shadow story reads:

Tiger putter falters, trails by 12 strokes

Golf has become like fantasy football or rotisserie baseball, only imagine if everybody has the same guy -- Tiger Woods -- on their team. No other golfers seem to exist, except possibly the ghost of Jack Nicklaus.

This is what I call The Dreaded Mike Tyson Syndrome, which is what happened to boxing when Tyson couldn't win anymore, but yet he continued to dominate news of boxing. You really don't want that to jeopardize your sport. Before Tiger's downfall, The Dreaded Mike Tyson Syndrome was most visible in IndyCar, when nobody cared about who was winning the races, but only about where Danica Patrick was back in the pack.

By contrast, now men's tennis is the ideal. All you hear about are the actual winners -- Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer -- who not only win but are all very distinct personalities. Perfect.

Golf first experienced The Dreaded Mike Tyson Syndrome years ago, when fans kept rooting for Arnold Palmer, even though he couldn't win a major championship anymore. But while Arnie's Army kept up hope, Palmer had a genuine superstar replacement in Jack Nicklaus, so the loser couldn't continue to absolutely dominate the golf news the way Tiger does today, when no single younger challenger has assumed his stardom.

Of course, the other thing about Tiger, vis-à-vis the beloved Palmer, is that many fans don't care for Mr. Woods, so the sport's attention is not only diverted to an also-ran but also to someone who is unloved. That's The Dreaded Mike Tyson Syndrome, 2.0.

Now, as the Masters begins, Tiger is playing better than he has since the spectacular eruption of his personal life. With his tournament win two weeks ago at Bay Hill, he's certainly rebounded to a point where I think we can upgrade him to be the male Maria Sharapova ... who continues to get inordinate publicity without ever quite getting another Grand Slam victory. In this context, it's worth noting that while Palmer took his last major at the age of 34, he won a very impressive 17 more PGA Tour events over the next nine years, teasing his fans and success ... but never took another of the four big ones.

Yes, maybe Tiger can actually get back on top of the actual golf universe again. He's 36 now, and Nicklaus won four majors after he reached that age. As long as Tiger doesn't win, though, but remains the focus of his sport, golf suffers. An individual sport thrives when its meal ticket is triumph and celebrity joined as one.

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Loading recommendations... Please wait while we load personalized content recommendations

Published | Modified
Frank Deford
FRANK DEFORD

Frank Deford is among the most versatile of American writers. His work has appeared in virtually every medium, including print, where he has written eloquently for Sports Illustrated since 1962. Deford is currently the magazine's Senior Contributing Writer and contributes a weekly column to SI.com. Deford can be heard as a commentator each week on Morning Edition. On television he is a regular correspondent on the HBO show Real Sports With Bryant Gumbel. He is the author of 15 books, and his latest,The Enitled, a novel about celebrity, sex and baseball, was published in 2007 to exceptional reviews. He and Red Smith are the only writers with multiple features in The Best American Sports Writing of the Century. Editor David Halberstam selected Deford's 1981 Sports Illustrated profile on Bobby Knight (The Rabbit Hunter) and his 1985 SI profile of boxer Billy Conn (The Boxer and the Blonde) for that prestigious anthology. For Deford the comparison is meaningful. "Red Smith was the finest columnist, and I mean not just sports columnist," Deford told Powell's Books in 2007. "I've always said that Red is like Vermeer, with those tiny, priceless pieces. Five hundred words, perfectly chosen, crafted. Best literary columnist, in any newspaper, that I've ever seen." Deford was elected to the National Association of Sportscasters and Sportswriters Hall of Fame. Six times at Sports Illustrated Deford was voted by his peers as U.S. Sportswriter of The Year. The American Journalism Review has likewise cited him as the nation's finest sportswriter, and twice he was voted Magazine Writer of The Year by the Washington Journalism Review. Deford has also been presented with the National Magazine Award for profiles; a Christopher Award; and journalism honor awards from the University of Missouri and Northeastern University; and he has received many honorary degrees. The Sporting News has described Deford as "the most influential sports voice among members of the print media," and the magazine GQ has called him, simply, "The world's greatest sportswriter." In broadcast, Deford has won a Cable Ace award, an Emmy and a George Foster Peabody Award for his television work. In 2005 ESPN presented a television biography of Deford's life and work, You Write Better Than You Play. Deford has spoken at well over a hundred colleges, as well as at forums, conventions and on cruise ships around the world. He served as the editor-in-chief of The National Sports Daily in its brief but celebrated existence. Deford also wrote Sports Illustrated's first Point After column, in 1986. Two of Deford's books, the novel, Everybody's All-American, and Alex: The Life Of A Child, his memoir about his daughter who died of cystic fibrosis, have been made into movies. Two of his original screenplays have also been filmed. For 16 years Deford served as national chairman of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, and he remains chairman emeritus. He resides in Westport, CT, with his wife, Carol. They have two grown children – a son, Christian, and a daughter, Scarlet. A native of Baltimore, Deford is a graduate of Princeton University, where he has taught American Studies.

Home/More Sports