"Staying with Mark Steinberg," Woods wrote. "Total confidence in him. Excited about the next stage in my professional life. Fond memories of [IMG founder] Mark McCormack."
Glad that Woods has confidence in Steinberg, but should he? Woods' aloof, distant public persona has drawn almost as much criticism as his off-course actions. Half-measures aren't working for Woods; he's come within sight of a few leads in the last couple years but hasn't been able to sustain anything. His public appearances are as by-the-book and cliched as ever, and he still looks like he's in physical pain whenever he has human interaction he can't completely control.
Plus, as CNBC's Darren Rovell noted, IMG isn't exactly broken up about the departure. IMG, Rovell writes, "doesn't really care that Woods is leaving. As IMG has moved away from representation and more towards more profitable entities like its broadcasting arm, its event division and its building of sports leagues in emerging markets like India and China, the cache of having Woods isn't appealing enough to fight for him." A bit of a sad commentary, yes?
It's time for Woods to consider drastic measures. What got him here won't get him any further. Yes, he's a multibillion-dollar corporation, but at the heart he's one guy swinging a golf club. If he's anything less than 100 percent, he should skip the U.S. Open, and maybe a couple more big tournaments besides. He needs people who will point him in new directions, not roll in the same old ruts he's ground into the earth.
Maybe Steinberg can do this; maybe, freed of IMG, the two can form a leaner partnership somewhere else. For Woods' sake, we hope so. So much of Woods' current career is in shambles that the only certain wrong move is doing more of the same.
Julie Berry Lori Heuring Nicole Scherzinger Jill Arrington Tami Donaldson
No comments:
Post a Comment