When the ‘Home of Golf’ rose to salute Tiger Woods

If there ever was a passing-the-mantle moment in modern golf, it happened a couple of minutes past 3pm on a sunny Friday at the Home of Golf.

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The Swilcan Bridge, centuries-old micro stone structure spanning the Swilcan Burn at Old Course, is one of the holiest monuments in the game. This is where Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer and Sam Snead stood and waved their last goodbye to the Open Championship, the oldest annual sporting event in the world.

As Tiger Woods hobbled up the stone pathway and toward the 18th fairway, playing partners Max Homa and Matthew Fitzpatrick stepped back. The packed gallery at the 150th Open rose as one to deafeningly applaud the greatest player in the history of the Royal & Ancient game.

Among those who tipped their hat to the legend were two of his best friends, Rory McIlroy and Justin Thomas. Both had just started their second round from the adjacent first tee and stood respectfully on the fairway. There was something celestial in the timing of the two groups crossing each other at that precise moment. The spirit of Old Tom Morris Senior must have had a part to play because even the all-powerful R&A could not have conjured it.

It was only when he saw the gesture of McIlroy and Thomas that Woods realised the gravity of the situation. With the Open not expected to return to St Andrews until 2030, the 15-time Major champion was possibly crossing the Swilcan Bridge for the last time as a competitor.

Suddenly, his limp almost disappeared. The pride in the man would not let him feel defeated by more than a dozen surgeries, or the ignominy of a missed cut and losing the battle to a course he publicly proclaimed his “most favourite in the whole world”.

It was easy for Woods to make the limp go away. It was nigh impossible to stop the flowing tears.

“I’ve been lucky enough to have been doing this since 1995. I don’t know if I’ll be physically able to play another British Open here at St Andrews. I certainly feel that I’ll be able to play more Opens, but I don’t know if I will be around when it comes back around here,” said Woods, who won two of his three Open championships here (2000, 2005).

“The warmth and the ovation at 18, it got to me. And I felt the guys (playing partners Matt Fitzpatrick and Alex Homa) stop there off the tee on 18, and it was just incredible. Just the amount of understanding and respect from all the people that are involved in this event, that come out in support of the players, the nods I was getting as the players were going out.

“I looked over there, and Rory gave me a tip of the cap. JT did the same. It’s just there’s something to it that’s just different.”

Woods said he was not retiring and that as his legs become stronger, he hoped to play a few more events than just the three Majors he played this year.

An emotional McIlroy said: “He was all our hero growing up, even though I’m maybe a touch older than some of the other guys. But we want to see him do well. We want to see him still out there competing. This week was obviously a tough week for him, but we’re all behind him.”

Homa, becoming sort of a cult figure on social media with his insight and humour, tweeted: “Typically after a missed cut u hope to flush it from ur memory. But not this one. This was pretty unforgettable… endlessly thankful for the 2 days with Tiger. That walk up 18 was a movie.”

Having recently won the US Open, Fitzpatrick knows a thing or two about the walk to the 18th green surrounded by adulating fans. Even he was gobsmacked. “It was amazing. It gave me goosebumps. Just looking around, seeing everyone stood up and giving him a standing ovation coming down 18. It’s something that will live with me forever,” he said.

“It goes without being said that anyone from 10, 15 years older to me to even 5-6 years younger than me, has grown up watching Tiger,” said Sahith Theegala, the young Indian origin player who is making waves in his rookie year on the PGA Tour.

Woods said he is unsure about his schedule for the next few months, but is expected to play in the Hero World Challenge that he hosts towards the year end.

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