← The Right Time with Bomani Jones
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- [00:01]
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- [00:15]
Michael Collins
Go Girls.
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Commercial Narrator
K pop demon hunters, Haja Boy's breakfast meal and Hunt Trick's meal have just dropped at McDonald's. They're calling this a battle for the fans.
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Bomani Jones
What do you say to that, Rumi?
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Commercial Narrator
It's not a battle. So glad the Saja Boys could take breakfast and give our meal the rest of the day.
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Bomani Jones
It is an honor to share.
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Commercial Narrator
No, it's our honor.
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Bomani Jones
It is our larger honor. No, really, stop. You can really feel the respect in this battle.
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Commercial Narrator
Pick a meal to pick a side
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Bomani Jones
and participate in McDonald's while supplies last Wave hey. This week's episode is about the Tiger Slam of 2000 into 2001 when Tiger woods won all those majors in a row. We recorded this weeks before you are going to see it, which is to say before he was arrested for dui. So we didn't know about that at the time. Thought you should know that first. Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the Right Time, A Wave original. My name is Bomani Jones. Thanks for listening wherever you get your podcast. Thanks for watching us on YouTube. Subscribe like, rate us, review us, give us five stars. You only give us four stars. I'm inclined to believe you are a hater. It is Time Machine Tuesday. And today we are going to talk about the legendary Tiger Slam of 2000 and 2001. And joining us is our old friend. Check him out at espn. America's caddy himself, Michael Collins. What's going on man?
- [02:38]
Michael Collins
It's been way too long, my friend. Way, way too long.
- [02:41]
Bomani Jones
Dude. It's been too long. And I still look back on the first time my buddy Shannon booked you for the Right Time when it was a radio show and he we got a Michael Collins on. I was like, okay. He's like, he works at ESPN Golf. I was like, okay. He's like, he is a former caddy. I'm like, okay. He goes, andy is black. And I say, oh, what K? I was like, it was so funny because he built the action up. And I am sure he did it on purpose, but he did it in a non comedic way. And then it was like, okay, cool. And then next thing I know, you, you telling stories about. It wasn't Shamblee that you asked if you wanted to fight. It was somebody else that you asked.
- [03:21]
Michael Collins
No.
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Bomani Jones
Well, I think you told me about somebody you wanted to fight. And I thought it was Shamblee because I had seen the story and you told me it was actually somebody else that you had invited to fight.
- [03:31]
Michael Collins
Yeah, well, that was Daniel Chopra, the guy. When I was caddying for Daniel Chopra. That's what you're remembering there too? Yeah, it was crazy times, man. Crazy times.
- [03:42]
Bomani Jones
You wanna go?
- [03:44]
Michael Collins
That was. Yeah, it was. I mean, it was just one of those. It was one of those crazy moments where it's like, I didn't know what was wrong. And he thought something that was happening that actually wasn't happening. And it like, was just setting him off really bad. And so we look back and laugh about it now. You know, we're still. We're still friends. Like, I love him, his wife, kids and all that, like. But like, in the moment, it was one of those, like, man, what is going on? And you know, it's like, what do I. And as a caddy, too, it's like, okay, this is. It's not okay during the tournament for like the contention to be like this. So it's like, I gotta do something to change. To change up this attitude. And if I put the bag down, it was like, you wanna go like this? I mean, and I. It's not like I hadn't done anything crazy like that before. I was caddying for a guy named Jumbo Elliott. John Elliott?
- [04:38]
Bomani Jones
Yeah. Football player?
- [04:40]
Michael Collins
Well, yeah, but no, not the Giants football player. This was the golfer, John Elliott.
- [04:45]
Bomani Jones
Hold on, man. He gotta get how he got it. You can't do that. I say him like, you gotta. Was he Jumbo enough to be Jumbo in the face of the other Jumbo?
- [04:55]
Michael Collins
Two reasons they called him Jumbo. My guy, the golfer named Jumbo, because he has a huge head.
- [05:01]
Bomani Jones
Yeah.
- [05:01]
Michael Collins
So Jumbo was for. And because at the time, he was one of the longest hitters out there. It was like him and John Daly could just send it. So they called him Jumbo as well. And in the golf space, you know, back then, you know, this was before any kind of fantasy football or anything like that. So it was like golfers weren't really into football all that much back then. So they didn't, they didn't realize that there was a Jumbo Elliott on the Giants. And as an Eagles fan, I knew there was a Jumbo Elliott on the Giants who, ironically enough, married a golfer. Oh, yeah, married a golfer from the LPGA Tour, crazy enough. Yeah. But my Jumbo Elliot, this was what I was getting at, was that after all that fighting stuff, when I was caddying for Jumbo, he was having a tough time. And I slammed the bag down at one point and told him he sucked in the middle of the tournament during a round on a par five. And I slammed it down and I was like, yeah, you suck. Maybe you should try darts or bowling or something after this. And I gave him a smart ass look. And then he proceeded to go birdie, birdie, hole in one after that. And then some other golfers that were in the group at the end of the round gave me their phone number and was like, hey, call me when you got a week off from comedy, because every now and then I need to kick the ass like that too. So it's all about for caddy and sometimes it's all about knowing the right thing to say at the right time to get your man motivated, you know, or sometimes when not to say anything at all, just let your dude be mad and like, you know, and sometimes that works too. That's why I loved caddy and so much, because that the psychology of what goes into being on a guy's bag and like, trying to bring the best out of them, it's easy when the guy's at his best, you know, caddy and for Tiger in 2000, and I could have done that anybody could have done. Put the bag down, give the number and watch what club he picks up. Okay? Like you just like watching.
- [07:07]
Bomani Jones
So we're going to talk about the Tiger Slam, right? I want to lead people into it, both a little bit of the history of what was going on in golf. And I always like to tell people my personal history of observing golf. I had never sat and watched a round of golf in my life until the 96 Masters, the final round. And I don't know why I watched. I don't have an answer for what it was, but I turn it on. And it really wasn't supposed to be compelling. Greg Norman was up six shots, I believe it was going, going into the final round and was losing by the turn. It, it. It was the most shocking, immediate collapse that I had ever seen. He didn't even wait till it got close. He immediately gave up the booty. He walked out there on T number one, dropped his draws, and the booty was on display for everybody. It is the. I don't think there is any comparable choke that anybody could have because that's all it was. And golf is a sport where people choke. You don't really hold it against people in golf the same way. Cuz everybody's got one on the ledger where they gave it up. Everybody sees it. There's nowhere for you to hide all of these things. But it was the first time I'd watched the Masters. It was in sd, which is an important note because the Masters took a big jump in hd, but I could watch it. And it was the first time that I was like, oh, I get what's going on here. That fall is when the Tiger woods thing gets started, right? He has declared as a pro. He started to win a few tournaments in the fall. And then we come around to the Masters in 97, where he famously shot a 40 on the front nine in the first round and a 30 on the back nine before he proceeded to curb stomp the rest of the field the whole way, right? Like, it was like, oh, okay, he's here. I don't know if it's possible for there to be anything comparable, because in team sports, nobody really wins that young. And if you do, it's because you're part of an ensemble. He beat everybody's ass so bad in there and then didn't win another major until the 99 PGA.
- [09:12]
Michael Collins
Yes.
- [09:13]
Bomani Jones
Right. Like there were. There were. Well, you could talk about that part. He didn't win that major. And I guess I say that because it's kind of like when a young guy does something, you're like, oh, he. He's gonna be kicking ass forever. But it didn't happen right away.
- [09:26]
Michael Collins
No. Because he was making swing changes. And that was, by the way, which
- [09:30]
Bomani Jones
is crazy because it just beat everybody
- [09:32]
Michael Collins
down the way that you. The way that he won in 97. Everyone was like, yo, okay, it's over. Like this dude. And you heard people say it, his kid's gonna win. He's gonna win everything. For this is the hist. Like Jim Nance said, historic. It was a historic win at the Masters, and it kind of made everyone in golf go, oh, Snap. Like, how many times, Even in the 90s, did we hear child prodigies, not just in golf, but in all sports. Like, this is the next one. And are they ever the next one, right, bruh? They ain't never the next one. They'd be like, hey, man, weren't you supposed to be the next one? Yes. Welcome to Walmart. Would you like a car?
- [10:19]
Bomani Jones
Right.
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Michael Collins
Tiger, like, was, holy crap, this kid is going to do it. And so. But he decided, n my swing is not what I need it to be. And so he goes through this period where, if you remember, way back in the day, my boy Curtis Strange did an interview with them at Milwaukee. And Tiger, that's the second place. Sucks. Like, I just. I only want to win. And that's the Curtis Strange. Oh, you'll learn, kid. You'll learn. And that was before. So he wins the Masters, but then has that stretch where it's like, maybe. Maybe Curtis Strange was right. Like, winning, maybe he not. But then when he comes back and wins that PGA in 99, you're like, oh, okay. Like, he figured something out. Just like the front nine, 40 in 97. And then something clicks, and on the back nine, you're like, oh, that guy. Yeah, that guy. Right after winning in 99 at that PGA Championship, you're thinking to yourself, oh, if he figures something out, like, that dude might be back. And so that was.
- [11:23]
Bomani Jones
And keep this in mind. Let me jump in right quick. It is slowed down enough between April of 97 and August of 99 that the game decided to try to throw the David Duvall thing out there, right? Like. Like, it was like, you know, maybe there's a rival at play here, David Duvall, who, by the way, my favorite factoid of David Duvall, for people who don't really follow golf, they already know this. David Duvall people so rich that when they say Duvall in Jacksonville, they talking about them. He. He's one of them. Like, Like. Like every city you go to, that street is named after somebody and you don't know who it is, but they crazy rich. All right, what about the whole county, bro?
- [12:03]
Michael Collins
That's what I'm trying to say. Like, some people have streets named after them. Some people might even have a town named after. But the county, the whole county, bruh. They still saying your family name at football games in the NFL today? Like, yes. Yeah. And people. That's the thing I will say about David, too. At that time, he was, you know, he was the dude that wore the Oakleys, and he was stone Cold. But people don't know, even to this day, that's he's one of the funniest guys that was out on the PGA Tour. Like, he was on the DL, super funny, a great personality, but also very shy in front of cameras and out around strangers, people he didn't know. So he. You put them Oakley's on, and he was like, you know, that dude just looks like he thinks he's better than everybody else. And it's like, no. That's kind of how super duper shy people they come off, too. But you don't. Yes. If all you see on TV is the dude in the glasses who don't look like he's smiling or like he don't do the fist pump or nothing like that, then you're like, man, look at this dude who you think. Who you think he is, but that's not honestly who he was. But yeah, that was in that moment where it was like, oh, Tiger got a dude who's going to threaten him for the crown. Like, this dude is.
- [13:22]
Bomani Jones
It seemed possible. We get to the year 2000, though, Tiger, after dominating the course in 97, and by that time they had be. Had they begun tweaking the course yet? I believe they had begun.
- [13:34]
Michael Collins
Oh, yeah. Tiger proofing after 97 masters, everybody was like, you know what we need to do? We need to back them tees up.
- [13:43]
Bomani Jones
Yo. Yeah, yeah, let's talk about this. Like, it would have been one thing if everybody went out there and destroyed the course and thereby, you know what I mean? Like, if you're just like, yo, the course. The game has outrun the course. We need to change the course because everybody's out here shooting 20 under, and that's not what it's supposed to be. That's not what happened. One dude did it and they decided, you know, that's actually kind of not fair to the rest of the kids, don't you think?
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Michael Collins
This is also where they tell you that, like, sometimes marketing is a lie. It's just say the opposite of what you're doing because it's going to sound amazing. You know what I mean? You know, it's going to sound odd. People like, yeah, that's probably. That's a good idea. What did they call it? We're Tiger proofing. And what did they actually do that's field proof? You made the golf course so that pretty much only Tiger woods had a chance because nobody was hitting it as far as him and hitting the shots he was hitting during tournaments. And so what you do for the Dudes that couldn't hit it as far as him. We should make the course longer.
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Bomani Jones
What?
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Michael Collins
I don't think that's. I don't. Okay if you're going to roll with that. But when they did it, everybody was like, yeah, we're Tiger proofing, of course. Okay.
- [15:03]
Bomani Jones
They were at wit's end. That's what that was. They were like, I don't know what to do now. The one thing they did, correct me if I'm wrong, it was a lot of right to left shots. It's almost like they went and found the weaknesses that they thought existed in Tiger's game, and they tried to create holes that played right into that.
- [15:19]
Michael Collins
Well, Tiger's miss at the time was the snap hook to the right.
- [15:24]
Bomani Jones
Yeah.
- [15:24]
Michael Collins
So if you make a lot of holes where it. It feeds a little bit from right to left, you're like, yeah. So if he tries to hit it too hard, it's going to go hard to the right. The problem was Tiger's go to shot was right to left. Right. When he was feeling it or under pressure. What's the shot he could always count on? Oh, the hole goes the way I need it to. Thank you very much. Where it actually might have helped if they did it the opposite way. Yeah.
- [15:53]
Bomani Jones
But he did not win a Masters after 97, like, going into 2000. Vijay Singh won the 2000 Masters, and it is important to note that he won the 2000 Masters because after that, when nobody else winning, nothing for a very, very, very long time, at least not as a major. Now, I want to stop and pause just for a second, because we've talked about Tiger and we mentioned David Duvall, but it's not like this was happening, and it was like some weak time in the history of professional golf. Like, it was a deep field of players. There's a lot of guys out there.
- [16:28]
Michael Collins
He was going against a lot of golf hall of Famers. Like, this is. This is the time you were talking about it. Greg Norman was still out there.
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Bomani Jones
Yeah.
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Michael Collins
Nick Fo, who won that 96 Masters, he's still out there. Bernhard Langer in his prime, too. I mean, VJ Singh, Phil Mickelson was coming on at the time as well. He was. He was the young gun. You said David Duvall was also out there. You had a guy like House Sutton, you know, who famously later on, like, be the right club today. Like, so there were the. The competition that Tiger was going up against, like, that was a. Still, we got spoiled by Tiger. So we think it was Tiger and nobody but he was beating like Ernie Ells was out there too. So it was like he was beating big name dudes. And if you remember, if you the start of that 2000 season, Tiger didn't win the first five events and actually finished tied for 13th twice. So like he finished tied for 13th at AT&T at Pebble beach, which was the Pro Am at the time. I think there was terrible weather there. But then in la, where he's never played great there either, at the time that was called the Nissan Open. Today it's his tournament called Genesis Invitational. He only finished tied for 13th there. Everything else was inside the top 10. But it wasn't like he came out those first five events. It was gangbusters. Right, right. I was like, oh, okay, this is all right. Not, you know, it's okay.
- [18:04]
Bomani Jones
By the way, Mickelson, the great beneficiary of the Tiger proofing, because the thing that people do not realize is a left handed player never won the masters in the 20th century. Not one. Now you can say it was a technology issue and all these other things, but Bubba Watson, Phil Mickelson, all those lefties won after they started fucking with the course.
- [18:23]
Michael Collins
Well, and two, Phil and Bubba are both. And I misspoke on, it wasn't 2000, it was 2001. Yeah, 2001, when Tiger didn't started the season and wasn't in those first five tournaments, didn't get any wins or anything like that. So it was like trending towards that tiger slam. So 2001, Tiger doesn't do anything like gangbusters coming out. But you were talking about Phil and Bubba. So both of them left handed fade the golf ball. And at the Masters for a lefty hitting a fade, which is a very comfortable shot even though Bubba can do it both ways. But it favors a lefty that can hit it far and hit a fade. So you got two guys who won the Masters that loved hitting a high bomb fade on a golf course that favors a high far fade. For a right handed golfer, that's a draw. And so it's easy to snap it. It's easy to snap it.
- [19:24]
Bomani Jones
Yeah. Now we get to 2000. The US Open is at Pebble Beach. I will let you get into the description of it because I can't. I just know Tiger won the Damn thing by 15 shots.
- [19:38]
Michael Collins
Here's a simple thing. Golf is a sport that can't be perfected. Right. Except in 2000 at the US Open at Pebble Beach, Tiger did something that's never been done. Tiger there's plenty of times where dudes beat golfers. In 2000 at the US Open, it's real easy. Tiger beat the game. Tiger woods at 2000 at the US Open. He was Bo Jackson in Tecmo Bowl. It's he was not only the only one under parents, he beat the he number. Second place was plus three. He was minus 12. So when I and the USGA prides itself on setting up their golf courses, especially back then, they would let the golf course get out of hand where it was. It would be unplayable for a regular PGA Tour event. They would have to stop play. But the USGA was like, nah, par is going to be the winning score, like sometimes one over and we're cool with that. And dudes are going to be walking out of here needing back teen in a massage like that because they gonna be so tore up from the whooping we gave them like. But Tiger went out there was like Rick James F. Yo couch.
- [21:06]
Bomani Jones
Yeah, well, what's wild about it to me is I always wrote, I was wrote about Tiger. The thing about Tiger was that was the great eraser, right? Like this was not a technically perfect game that he played, right. He's not Nick fdo. He's not Nick Price who's keeping the ball in the middle of the fairway and keeping it and going. And the U.S. open is designed to penalize you for straying right, for going left and right. And now you're in this unthinkable rough. The idea is that these dudes are going to look like you when they play on this course, right? Because they're going to be out there when things go bad. And he shot 12 under there.
- [21:41]
Michael Collins
Well, here's the like. Think about the most famous shot that he hit on that par five. The, the sixth hole there is on the right side before the cliff falls into the Pacific Ocean. At the time there was probably 15 yards of. I won't even call it rough. It was like, hey, it was wispy, looked like a wheat field. He hit a shot into that wheat field where if anyone else in the field is in there with the equipment and ball that they had at the time, you have to just chip out sideways to the fairway. Because this is the other thing. If you go for that green and two even from the fairway off a little bit of a downslope, you're hitting over a five story building which for pro golfers like that's in your head now. You put a guy in a wheat field, not in a perfect fairway where you're like, okay, I still gotta think about this stuff. Then this dude takes iron out of that. And at the time you heard the broadcaster say, probably laying up on this. And then you hear one guy, I don't know if he's laying up here, and he takes this lash at it, and when it comes out, like. I don't know where the term insane came from, but, boy, it held true there. Silence is deafening. And when that ball came out, there was like. Even the crowd was just like. And then just watch because, like, is it. Is that ball going to the. And then the people at the bottom can't see. And the people at the top were like, we'll just wait for his third shot. Oh, shit. And it hops up onto the green and he's got a putt for eagle. And you wait. That's. It's not. That's not possible in that. I think that swing in that moment was when the whole world said to themselves, yep. Video game. Like this dude. He went from Tiger woods the golfer to Tiger woods the immortal at the. It was like this, dude, okay, so how much is second place? Because no one, if you're doing that, and you're the only human in the world at the time that can do that. Like, maybe you're not human. And so we're not playing a fair fight. And this is why I say that US Open. Tiger beat the game. He didn't beat the field. He beat the game of golf. It's fair. When's the last time, the most unbeatable
- [24:23]
Bomani Jones
game that has ever existed against the most beatable organization?
- [24:27]
Michael Collins
You know what I mean? When's the last time the USGA as an organization had a golfer make them go like they was ugly, Crying.
- [24:39]
Bomani Jones
Right? Right. He had already brought Augusta national to the. Oh, no, no, no. Not. Not him. Not. Like, this cannot be. USGA is just like. Yeah. I mean, but look. But what. We still got it like that because he had not won the US Open up until this point. We have to remember. And I want to run through the progression of the rounds for people so they understand the first round of that tournament played pretty well for everybody. Like, Tiger had a wire to wire win in this. He shot a 65. But Miguel Angeli Menace, who I think tied for second in the tournament, he shot a. He shot a five under. John Houston shot a four under. You had guys like Hal Irwin, there's three under, a bunch of guys at two under. Like, people had a pretty good opening round it. The course began to play tougher. But Understand this. At the end of the second round, Tiger is at 8 under. Second place is at 2 under. The end of the third round, he's still at 8 under. It's a par 71. He's still at 8 under, but now it's 2 over. That's behind him. Yes, that is.
- [25:39]
Michael Collins
Michael, here's what happened.
- [25:40]
Bomani Jones
Show him what it looks like.
- [25:41]
Michael Collins
Everybody start here. And there's a. Oh, hey. Hey, man, where you going? No, no, we're all coming down. Hey, we're all going to the basement. Why you going up to the attic? Where you going? Like.
- [25:52]
Bomani Jones
Like, if they had played four more rounds, Tiger would have been up all the way up here, and everybody else would have been under the ground. So he's up 10 at the end of the third round, and by the end of the final round, he's up 15.
- [26:06]
Michael Collins
It's. It was one of those things on. On Sunday. Even the announcer was just like, I don't. There's no way to make this dramatic other than all we need to focus on is this guy and what he's doing. Because no one had ever seen this before, especially in a tournament like this, not just with this prestige, but at this place, you know? I mean, you're talking about a place where Jack Nicklaus won a US Open, Tom Watson won a US Open, but not like this. Like, no one had ever done anything like this, where there was. There was no drama with the score. The drama was, how much could this dude win by? At one point, you thought someone from the USGA would just come out with a flag and be like, okay, man, you only. You don't even gotta finish.
- [27:01]
Commercial Narrator
Please stop.
- [27:02]
Michael Collins
Stop, man. Please stop, bro.
- [27:06]
Bomani Jones
And the rest. And the rest of these guys are just in it for money. And I'm not saying that as an insult to those people, but I remember in 97, I was on the phone with my brother and was like, I don't even know why these other cats are out here. It's like, yeah, because they cut checks for second. Like, the only thing left to play for for everybody else was the money.
- [27:24]
Michael Collins
There was.
- [27:25]
Bomani Jones
There was nothing else here for you. Like, say it.
- [27:30]
Michael Collins
That's the other thing. That's what. That's another thing people forget is guys like Ernie Ells would be like, we know when Tiger's playing and he's playing. Well, we're all playing for second. Can you imagine in any other sport, like, going into a game. Listen, if. If they're. If they got their B plus game, we can't win.
- [27:53]
Bomani Jones
The only Thing similar to me is when Usain Bolt won the hundred at the 2012 Olympics. The second one.
- [28:01]
Michael Collins
Okay.
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Bomani Jones
I've never seen people happier for second and third in my life. They were celebrating like they won gold medals, and those are sprinters.
- [28:11]
Michael Collins
But that's also because with probably 25 meters left, Usain looking around, smiling at people like, when's the last time you seen second, third, fourth, and fifth? They on the grind. And you got one dude who's like this. Hey, mama. Hey, what's up, Uncle Tim? How you doing,
- [28:33]
Bomani Jones
brother? I just remember, I think in 2012, I think Tyson Gay finished with like, a 9, 8, 5 or something like that.
- [28:43]
Michael Collins
Yeah.
- [28:45]
Bomani Jones
So what? He left with his dick in his hand. Like, there was no medal for him. Like. Like who. I think it was him. I can't remember exactly who it was, but there was. There was nothing for fourth place was such an unreal score, and you weren't even close.
- [29:06]
Michael Collins
It's hard to. It's hard to tell people that to. Well, actually, no, it might be easier. It might be easier to tell somebody, you know, yo, I ran nine, eight, six. You'd be like, oh, snap.
- [29:18]
Bomani Jones
Just leave it at that.
- [29:19]
Michael Collins
How much did you win by? Nah, nah, man.
- [29:24]
Bomani Jones
It really wasn't about that. You know what I'm saying? Like, it was about me. When I raced, I raced against myself. You know what I'm saying? I don't even be thinking about these other cats out here. Like, that's what you got to say in golf, man. I just played a course, man.
- [29:36]
Michael Collins
Tiger did say, too, back in the day, like, he had to make up games sometimes. Like, that's what him and Stevie would do. They would be like, okay, now I got. I hit this mark that I. That I set for myself. Now I gotta. Now what's the next mark? Okay, now get to this number, all right? And then once you get there. Oh, I bet you can't get to this number, you know? And that's. That's the game you're playing. Cause you're not playing against everybody else.
- [30:02]
Bomani Jones
I had forgot about old Stevie. Talk about messing up your good thing, boy. I. I forgot about Stevie. Did Stevie get up there and get a little bit loose with the homies at that. At that little banquet that one time? Oh, yeah, yeah.
- [30:21]
Michael Collins
That's one of the. That's when you learn that the Internet is international, that you're at something in New Zealand. Be like, I can just have some fun, drink a little bit, get a little tipsy, say some fun things. And that's when that was one of those, when everybody started realizing, oh, that that stuff people record on their phones gets out and it goes worldwide.
- [30:39]
Bomani Jones
Sometimes they, they always get loose at the crib, man. They always, they always wind up going
- [30:44]
Michael Collins
through you in a safe space.
- [30:45]
Bomani Jones
Yes, yes. Oh, don't let them be talking to a newspaper reporter in the native language. That, that's like when the boys go back to France, like, let me tell you something. This off season, that boy Victor gonna go over to France and say something crazy to l' Keep or one of them other magazines they got over there. Just you watch. Just you watch. He ain't gonna be able to help it. That's like, it's in the French interviews that when he says stuff like, yeah, Rudy Gay Rudy, Rudy Gobert will never win defensive player of the year again. Yo, man, like, we got Google Translate now, homie.
- [31:18]
Michael Collins
We can find out. You ain't got nobody on your team saying, hold up. But see, here's for me, I'm, I'm a big fan of. The flip side of that is like, we don't get to attack people for doing stuff like that. And then on the flip side be like, I don't understand why all these athletes are so vanilla with all their answers. It's like, no, you say that, but then you complaining bitch when a dude is honest and says what he thinks and it's like, how dare you pick one, man. Make up your damn mind.
- [31:56]
Bomani Jones
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Michael Collins
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- [34:35]
Bomani Jones
All right, we are back with Michael Collins. He got his master's gear. I should have wore my master's visor, you know what I'm saying? I got a couple ball markers too. You know, when people go down there, they bring a little something back for you, boy.
- [34:46]
Michael Collins
Bring a little something. Let me tell you. Do you know what the, the like first timers, their average spend is just under $2,000.
- [34:56]
Bomani Jones
Are you serious?
- [34:58]
Michael Collins
Yeah, big time. And I spend. When I have been to the masters and I've been there 14 times, 13 times, and I have never left Augusta national without dropping four large. But I know of like, I've talked to some of the people that work there and like, they've told me stories of people walking in spending 50, 50 GS, but then they're out selling all this stuff like I would never.
- [35:28]
Bomani Jones
Yeah, that'll feel right.
- [35:29]
Michael Collins
No, man, that's the thing. Like now the one thing I do like to do is I. It's one of the best things that you can do. Like you said, with the stuff that you have, there is nothing that is more meaningful to people that have never been there than a gift from the Masters.
- [35:44]
Bomani Jones
Hey, man, let me tell you something. I'D be afraid to go sell they stuff that'd be like using Mickey Mouse on your shit. Like, I'd be afraid they gonna come find you. And they ain't even.
- [35:54]
Michael Collins
I'm saying, like, this is. Nah, man, if you. I. Yeah, man, it's just number one. It fee. It would feel slimy doing something like that. So.
- [36:04]
Bomani Jones
But they. But, brother, even on top of that, they know people like, you think. If you think they can't get ice to bust your door down, you crazy. They. They know, right?
- [36:15]
Michael Collins
That's. Well, I will say, like, there's. Augusta national is more secretive than Fight Club.
- [36:22]
Bomani Jones
Yes.
- [36:24]
Michael Collins
So, like. Yes. And the people that they're like, the members that. The names of members you don't know, they're the ones that are, like, how they found out. Like, if somebody was doing something, then not even. Like, you just. You go to the Masters and you buy $50,000 worth of shirts, and now you put a master store up there and stuff like that. And now, like, you and none of your family members or anybody of your friends can ever get back to the Masters tickets magically again. You never get back there. Like, I wonder how that happened. Oh, come on, man.
- [37:00]
Bomani Jones
Yeah, come on. Just. Just try too hard.
- [37:03]
Michael Collins
Yeah, but some of the best gifts I ever gave out, like, I hooked up one dude with a master's watch one time, and that was like, yeah, the look on people's faces, you know, I had a dude that was playing for the. For my team, the Eagles, and he was into watches. And then so I surprised him one time and was like, I'm gonna give you something that you can't get, and you can show off that all these other $300,000 watches and quarter million dollar watches and stuff like that, anybody can buy them, but you can't get this. And so being able to give people stuff that they can't buy, bruh, that's the greatest feeling in the world, watching people's face light up and stuff like that. So, yeah, I got probably. I got probably 200 hats. I got a hat issue. My thing. So, like, for the years I've been going, I got so many hats. And like, of course, you know, the gnome is the big thing now.
- [38:05]
Bomani Jones
Yeah, brother, you got a hat issue. Cause, like, me, you got a head issue, you know what I'm saying? You know, like, and you be out there playing. Like, people don't understand. Like, I never quite got there into the LL zone, you know what I'm saying? Where it's just like, hey, you know, hats are Going to be my thing. But we talk about Tiger woods. St. Andrews was 2000 for him at the. And I believe it's the first time he played St. Andrews in the Open Championship. And you correct me if I'm wrong, but this was another course, very much so made for Tiger woods in a sense.
- [38:33]
Michael Collins
He took all of the trouble out of play. This was another. So you know, this is coming off of that US Open win where he beat the game, right? Not only filled by 15, and now he goes to the Open Championship. This. Let's put this in perspective. He shot minus 12 at the Open champ at the US Open, and was like. Everybody was like, holy cow, this dude is like that. And then he went to the Open championship and shot minus 19, almost shot minus 20 and beat the field by eight.
- [39:10]
Bomani Jones
Yes. At the Old Course, coming off 15, he is now won by eight.
- [39:17]
Michael Collins
This dude has won two major championships in the same season by 23 strokes combined.
- [39:27]
Bomani Jones
Yes. And Ernie L's hall of Famer, I believe, was in second place of both of those. And he's the 23 behind guy.
- [39:35]
Michael Collins
He's 23.
- [39:36]
Bomani Jones
And me,
- [39:38]
Michael Collins
poor dude's 23. Andme where if Tiger's not playing, he's holding the two trophies. Like we're talking about an Ernie Slam potentially. So, yeah, that was. That's St. Andrews thing like, to do not only what he did at the US Open at Pebble beach, at historic Place, now you go to literally the home of golf itself. St. Andrews is the home of golf. And for most people who have never played an Open Championship at St. Andrews, there is a pretty good sized learning curve. But Tiger was just one of those guys who was in a place. And this is also what happens. I can tell you this too, as. As a guy who's been fortunate enough to like one or two times get into those special moments with a player where no matter what you do off the tee, this the number for the second shot is perfect. Like, there's nowhere in between clubs. Like, what do you like here? What are you like, it's. No, you get there and you go, 150. Pitching wedge down.
- [40:52]
Bomani Jones
150, right?
- [40:54]
Michael Collins
It's open. You're like, all right, 150 is down. Pitching wedge downwind. Yep. Perfect. Boom. Hit the shot. Or like, you would. There were famous times where Stevie would just be like, at that target and Tiger would go, yeah. And then as the ball came off of the club face, he would be like, that target right there. Right. Like, just cockily announcing to everybody, like, you can't do that. Right. And Stevie was. The dude was like, yeah, that target. And just, boom. Beat like it was watching as a caddy, watching those two work surgically, like, that was. It was a dance, even at the Open, that I don't think anyone had ever seen before. Like that. And it's coming off the US Open. And I think for the rest of the field, that was the feeling of, hold him up. You know what I'm saying? Like, defeat. You're already down like this, and now Tiger and Stevie are grabbing him. Like, hold him up. Like, we ain't done knocking you. Like, yeah, what do you do?
- [42:10]
Bomani Jones
And those in those first three majors of the year, at that point, this is when the PGA was on the back end of the schedule rather than being on the front. Is analogous in tennis to you have a hardcore major, a clay major, and a grass major. Like, these are three different types of golf that you are playing, Right? Like, the Lynx golf that is required to play at the Open is not the same. It's not just like, oh, okay, you've been whooping ass everywhere. Now you gonna come whoop ass here? Cause that's what you do. No, you have to play a different game. Like, was it at the Open that year that Tiger went out there without the driver and won in the final round?
- [42:44]
Michael Collins
Oh, he had the driver in the bag and didn't have to hit it.
- [42:47]
Bomani Jones
Yeah, that's what it was. Yeah. But, like, it's. These are. These are different. Different games that he has had to play. And he just went and dominated U.S. open golf and then came behind it and dominated this links golf, where you're playing with this crazy wind. It's probably raining. All your shots need to stay low.
- [43:03]
Michael Collins
That's the key. So you made a great analogy there with tennis, right. When you're playing on the hard court, it's a power game. When you're playing on the grass court, it's a ground game, Right? And same with the clay. When you're playing on the clay, it's more of a precision type of thing. Well, the U.S. open is all about precision. You need to hit it here, and then you need to hit it here. So you're playing to spots, and you got to hit it really high and really soft, and no one could do it like Tiger could do it back then, especially with mid to long irons. So now when you go to the Open Championship, instead of playing everything high, now you got to play everything low. You're not landing anything on the green because it plays so firm. And so fast that if something hits the green, it gone like she. It's run away back there.
- [43:48]
Bomani Jones
So you greens at that level, for people who don't know are like putting in the kitchen.
- [43:52]
Michael Collins
Correct. And the fairways sometimes at Open Championships can be faster than the greens. So you're landing a ball 20 to 30 yards short of the putting surface and then hoping that it takes the mounds correctly, misses the bunkers and gets on the putting surface. And so those two style of games are. It's completely opposite. It's chocolate and vanilla. Like, it's not like, well, my game kind of fits a little bit of both. No, it don't. You have to play a completely different style of golf. And for him to go over there and Tiger, like dominating like that, winning by eight shots after playing a completely different style. And you talking about these things are, that's four weeks apart. It's a month. So it's not like I got plenty of time to prepare and get ready. Like, I'm gonna, I'll take two months and I'm gonna change up kind of how I flight everything and what I need to do. Nah, they say you got, you got a month where you're taking time off to, to chill, and then you're going to just show up there and your game's going to be set and ready. Like, where are you going, where are you going to practice that in the United States? Because nowhere in the US can you set up courses at the time to like play like that. Nowhere in the US Was like that. So him showing up and doing that was another one where everybody was like, oh, this dude was doing this too.
- [45:21]
Bomani Jones
And then he comes about, holla in the PGA next. And it's interesting, the PGA is the one in this run that we talk about the least, but it's the one that went to the playoff. And I remember very clearly when this happened, something that was very interesting is that he's in the playoff with this dude named Bob May. That meant nothing to us. But Bob May was that dude back in the day in California. Like, that was a guy that young Tiger was like, trying to keep up, was trying to get to at a point. And good for you, Bob B. You got to the playoff. Even better for you that you lost. Because if you hadn't lost, this would have just kind of been weirdo factoid, right? But now Tiger's back to back champion at the pga.
- [45:55]
Michael Collins
And the irony was like, that was the greatest Cinderella story at the time that we were seeing. And it might have been a Great Cinderella story if he won. Like, just, like, it would have been unheard of if he won. But two. Two things about that. One, if Bob May wins that playoff, then we don't get to have any of the Tiger slam conversations at all. And maybe the slam never happens the way that it happened. Like, that we. I. You know, who knows? There's no way to Monday morning quarterback and fast forward. Then Yang at another PGA champion 2009 doesn't become golf's Buster Douglas because Tiger never has. Then that run where he is undefeated going into Sunday with the lead of a major, there was no such thing as that run. And, like, then Yang doesn't become Yang. And, like, everything that happens after that also never potentially happens. But at the time, like, Bob May even getting into that playoff, like, who is this short dude who is 50 yards behind Tiger off the tee and yet hitting these long irons against nine irons? Like, guys who's hitting it so high and soft against a dude who has to bring it in low because he's using irons that are so much longer. And he's further away than these greens than Tiger is, and yet he's hanging with them. So there's. There's that. You're torn as a golf fan. Like, I love the fact that Cinderella's got a chance to dance and, like, is hanging with Tiger and hitting these crazy, amazing shots when he's out of position and, like, giving himself an absolute chance going into this playoff. And you're like, holy cow. Like, is Tiger really? Is this going to happen? And then once we learn that backstory of Bob May was like, oh, not only is this dude the short knocker, like, and you're like, this. How is this happening? And you're like, oh, because this is a dude who knows that Tiger used to look up to him.
- [48:17]
Bomani Jones
Yeah.
- [48:17]
Michael Collins
So he might not have the same fear, or he's drawing off of something from the past that no one else had to draw off of against King Kong.
- [48:29]
Bomani Jones
Yeah. Like, there's nothing. Like, when you're like, oh, you. Are you talking about insert name here. Like, a great example of this, the 1999 Final Four when UConn beat Duke, and Duke had his point guard named William Avery. William Avery was cold. He didn't work out in the NBA for him, but he was cold in college. And he was from Augusta, Georgia. Yukon, had a dude named Ricky Moore who was two years ahead of Avery and was basically like, Will Avery's big brother. And he treated him like that. And the game went like that. Every now and then that happens where there's some dude on the other side that's like, you talking about who. It's like when you in college and when you first get to college and you see the dudes that are in frats, you're like, oh, they must be somebody. They in the frat. But then you get to be a junior. And then the cats there were nobodies when you were freshmen are now in the frat, and you're like, oh, you talk about him, right? That's Bob May. Like, oh, you talking about him like. Yeah, no, no, he was good. I mean, it was coming, but I can't. I can't see myself being afraid of this cat. And he wasn't.
- [49:25]
Michael Collins
Yes, yes. And that. That, you know, for some people, too, you, you know, you hear that saying, the moment's too big. But as you said for Bob May at the time, it was like, oh, Tiger. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I know if I get in, you know, if we have a battle, I ain't scared. Like, I battled this dude before. It ain't even though, like, the mystique outside the bubble of Tiger is there in the moment, you're like, huh? But for everybody on the outside, like you said with Avery from when they playing Duke and all of that, everyone on the outside was like, yo, who is this dude that thinks he's. And they don't know the backstory. So you're just like, yo, who this dude think he is? Like, showing up and showing out? You're like, this dude's out of nowhere when it's like, nah, he's not. He's kind of not out of nowhere. You just didn't know the backstory.
- [50:12]
Bomani Jones
Yep. But you know what? It was cute. Three hole playoff, Tiger wins. It was cute and it was cute. It really was, man. It added flavor to the story. You know what I'm saying? Like, it's a. It's a. It like, it. It made for a very interesting part of this podcast. Right. People didn't see that part coming. Okay, We. We get to the 2001 Masters. Keeping in mind, again, they've been messing with the course, and Tiger has not won since the first time he got there. And now we're here, and it's this idea of a Tiger slam. And to me, yes, you hold all the trophies at the same time. It's a slam.
- [50:42]
Michael Collins
We got to take time out and back up, though, a little bit, too. In 2001, what did he do going into that Masters as well? You have to remember, he Won the two tournaments that he played in. Right before that, he won the Arnold Palmer Invitational. And who'd he beat there? Phil Mickelson. Yeah. Then he goes to the Players Championship again. Little bit of a different style of golf that you got to play at the Players Championship. And who's he beat at the Players Championship? Vijay Singh. So this dude is going in to the Masters, which is his next event.
- [51:23]
Bomani Jones
Checking the list.
- [51:24]
Michael Collins
Having beat Phil Mickelson and Vijay Singh probably at the time, his two biggest rivals on the golf course, like, two dudes that were definitely guys that were names, you better know where they are on the leaderboard. And he took both of them down in the two events going into the Masters. And then. Oh, yeah, like, who wins three starts in a row? And now you're throwing on top of the fact the slam is on the line. Like, no one since Bobby Jones has won all four in a row. So he's going for a three. A threesome. Three straight wins, API players. And now he shows up at the Masters. And the pressure. And this is like 2001. The media was no joke. This is not 96 or 97 when there's like 50 news report, 50 newspaper people there and seven TV people. This is a gaggle. And the Internet is full blown.
- [52:27]
Bomani Jones
Yeah. And he had to grind this one out, man. Like, he's down five strokes at the end of the first round. He's down two strokes at the end of the second, and he's up one at the end of third. It just. It's. It's the same as it ever was with Tiger at Augusta. Just need a little time to get warm. Just need a little time to get it cracking.
- [52:47]
Michael Collins
But Tiger's also that dude, too. Like, you think of that first round and you're like, man, he down five. But everybody still, you know, in the back of every golfer's head, too, that they're still doing this. Where. Yep. You seen him? Have you seen him? Where he at? Like, hold on, are you coming? Is he coming? And so you're playing with that on your shoulders against the dude who is, like, now he's looking at you from behind, like, it's all right. I just gotta do what I gotta do. And then when that plod starts, I mean, this is that Tiger woods where if your name was at the top of the leaderboard and his name was on a leaderboard, you could see you started to get that sinking feeling in your stomach. And when you were around, especially at Augusta, because there's no electronic scoreboards, so everybody's sitting around there. Two things happen. First is when you hear a roar at Augusta. And even to this day, as many times as I've been there, when Tiger's not playing, the Tiger roar hits different. Like, there is a. There's a difference even between a Tiger roar and a hole in one roar, which. A hole in one roar is crazy. But when Tiger's making a move and you're on a hole and he makes a birdie and does a fist pump, because Augusta doesn't allow phones, and everyone. And this is the one other reason why I love Augusta, everyone who's there at the Masters has to be engaged in the moment where you are. There is no checking. Let me see where somebody else is. There is getting. I got an alert. And something's going on outside. Even the gates or even inside. There's no. You have to be present in the moment of where you are. So when Tiger does something and you're at that spot, the only thing for you to do is be in that moment, in that spot. So the explosion of emotion for the fans, it still gives me goosebumps. Talking about. It only happens at Augusta. It only happens at the Masters because of how they are.
- [55:18]
Bomani Jones
Yeah. If the presence in the moment, the pa.
- [55:20]
Michael Collins
It's why people at Augusta, you're not called a fan. You're a patron.
- [55:24]
Bomani Jones
Right.
- [55:24]
Michael Collins
There's no such thing. Like, if you. If even you don't make that slip up when you're on TV and you're doing. The people that are there to watch golf, they're patrons. Every other tournament, you got fans, Augusta got patrons. And that's like the historic nature of that place. So when Tiger has a roar, if you're over on a hole on the other side of the golf course, the way that that sound comes through those pine trees. And then, as I said, it's two things. The second thing that happens is all of those scoreboards that are not electronic, the score has to be changed manually. So what happens is they have. In that scoreboard, there's, like, a long strip and where the name woods will be up there, and the score will be up there. And what happens is then the score itself. Let me see if I can show how the score. So if this is the card that has the score on it, the score will be here, the thing will drop, and then the patrons will only see a blank space. So you know something's coming, and then boop. When it pops up with the new score, whether it's a birdie or an eagle, the crowd in that space, then you'll hear. And so Tiger was controlling the crowds around the Masters, not just on the holes he was on, but on all the holes that had those manual scoreboards. Because as soon as they flipped and put that new score up and you see his name, now they got to move woods up. Now they got to put the new score. And it was, oh, and if you're a dude, like, you're getting ready to hit a putt, like, just save par, and now you're getting ready to stand over it, and you just backed off, guess you got no chance of making that putt. Done.
- [57:23]
Bomani Jones
And look, he comes out of that third round, he's up one stroke on Phil Mickelson. So that's the pairing, right? It's Tiger and Phil coming down the end of this. And you look at the top 10 at the end of the third round of that tournament, and it's a bunch of dudes who won major championships. Mark Al, Kia Ajel Cabrera, David Duvall, Ernie Ells, Lee Jansen, Jose Maria, Oda Thal. Like, it's a bunch of dudes. Rocco Mediate, who wound up playing in that playoff. Playoff in 2008 with Tiger, like, it's a bunch of dudes behind him going into this final round.
- [57:55]
Michael Collins
It's names that everybody know. And yet the two titans. You know what it was on Sunday? Sunday, everyone went to church in the morning and just went. I just want to say thank you. I just wanna. I know it's a lot of times that I ask for things that you don't deliver on, and I still gotta be thankful, but today I might put just a little extra in the collection plate just because I know what's. The two dudes that we always dream of seeing in a major championship battle are about to do battle for the Green Jacket. And we know what's on the line for Tiger, right? And so I don't know a time either, like, when other than everyone has different specific moments for you. It was 1996. You're like, I don't even know why I turned on the Masters in 1996, as you said, when you were watching. But I know, like, I was enthralled by. Like you said, you were enthralled by watching the collapse of Greg Norman and how Nick Faldo ended up winning. And it was just like, when you turned it on, you were just like, I can't. It could have been something crazy. Be like, oh, man, there's a kitten in the tree that. Kittens in the tree. Until this is over. Like, you're gonna watch. I don't. That 2001 Masters with that final group. I don't remember a time when more people who had no interest in golf whatsoever at the time sat down and watched it. Like, from the moment that that mug came on cbs, everybody was like, we're watching this. Like, we're not even into. God. I don't. I'm. I need to see this. Like. And it was like, what does birdie mean? It means you. You. You played the whole one shot better than what you were supposed to. What does bogey mean? Bogey means you play one shot. Word. Just watch, man. Shut up. There were people who. Where like, holy cow. There are people watching golf that don't care about golf. And so I think it's an. It was an impactful Sunday in a way that is hard to measure, because then so many people after the fact stuck around. And that's where I say it's immeasurable, because we know, like, people watch golf every now and then for major champions, especially the Masters, and then golf. Like, then the golf is gone. Maybe, oh, something crazy is happening. We'll flip it on and watch it for a couple of hours or something like that. But we're not emotionally invested in the game. But I think at that 2000 Masters after the fact, people stayed and became emotionally invested in golf where they had never been before.
- [60:56]
Bomani Jones
And it's interesting because Tiger had three more years after this where he won multiple majors. There's the 2008 playoff where he's playing on the broken leg. There is his 2019 Masters, which is his analog to the Jack Nicklaus 1986 Masters. Right? Like, the one more you go. Right. Like, you went ahead and got that one, but it was It. It never felt quite the same as it did that year. He was still Tiger woods after that.
- [61:23]
Michael Collins
Right?
- [61:24]
Bomani Jones
Like, the magnitude. And I would be inclined to say he became a better golfer after that. Like, I don't think he got worse after 2000.
- [61:31]
Michael Collins
Well, you have to remember, too, like, he also after 2000. Then after 2001, he changed his swing again. Remember, like, that was. It was after 2001. Like, this is. That's when he also. Then, like, him and Butch split, and that's when Hank Haney came in. And so, like, when he went into another dominant phase in 2006 and 2007, that was. Haney was his swing coach then. And it was another period where everybody was like, holy cow. This dude completely changed his swing again and started dominating. Now, was it the same feel as 2000, 2001. No, no. And here's. And you know this, too, man, because me and you have had this conversation before, and you see me have conversations with people like this little as recently as five years ago, when people were like, hey, man, you think Tiger's coming back? Like, is Tiger going to be back? Having to tell people that went through that time in 2000 and 2001, hey, man, that dude is not. He. He gone. Yeah. It's hard to make people believe that dude. He don't exist anymore.
- [62:52]
Bomani Jones
It's like, what people talk about is the U back. Like, do you know what the. You was right. Is Florida State back top five, 14 years in a row? I don't know if I can say that. I don't think so.
- [63:07]
Michael Collins
This. Yeah. And it's. It is too. Like. And I don't. And I'm not saying this as a shot, but, like, so Bobby Jones wins all. He wins the Grand Slam and then walks away from golf. And, like, we have a couple of guys who are dominant and, like, in flashes and moments and stuff. But then Nicholas comes along, and Bobby Jones says about Jack Nicklaus, he plays a game with which I'm not familiar, right? And now we see Nicholas take the mantle of. He's the dude who everybody thinks is like, I don't. When he's at his best, I can't beat him, right? And there'll be. Never be another Jack Nicklaus until Tiger comes along. And Jack then has to say the same thing about Tiger. He plays a game with which I'm not familiar. And now we see Tiger have that time where everyone in golf says, he plays the game with which I'm not familiar. And when he's at his best, no one, I can't beat him, right? We are now in a period where Tiger is still around. And it's like, Jack after 1986, right? He was still around. Like, he had that flash in 1986 when he won the Masters, right? Where it was like, this dude kind of came out of nowhere and had that flash where it was like. And we saw the last. The last time Tiger won the Masters was like, there was that same type of moment, but because we lived through 2000-2001-2006-2007, we're like, you think he could still do it again? And it's like, I would love to be the guy, give you hope. I would love to give you hope, but the dudes that are out there now are playing a game that Tiger doesn't play.
- [65:03]
Bomani Jones
Yeah. And people also misunderstood this, the idea that you can play golf forever. You can play golf forever. But it is still. It's either a young. It's a young man's game and it's a middle age game. But only two guys have truly been great, both young and middle aged. Jack Nichols and Gary player. The only two guys to win multiple majors on both sides of 35. Because remember, the car accident is in 2009. He turns 35 in December of 2010. The odds were always against him on that backside. That's before we even get into all the physical wear and tear that he had endured. But I think, what was it? Tom. Tom Watson won 11 majors by 33.
- [65:42]
Michael Collins
Right.
- [65:42]
Bomani Jones
Never won another one. This happens. Like Sam Snead, Phil Mickelson, examples of guys who won all Those majors after 35, like, it's really hard to be excellent at that game for a really long time. It's Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player. For people who don't know, he's like, goddamn Jack LaLanne right out there doing all the push ups and sit ups and all of that stuff. Like, he's a physical. Like, he's an unreal physical specimen in terms of longevity.
- [66:08]
Michael Collins
And if we're being honest, too, when it comes to Gary Player, like, he's like, Jack lalanne. You're like, oh, shit, here come crazy.
- [66:14]
Bomani Jones
Yep,
- [66:16]
Michael Collins
there he is. Like, I love him to death. This dude is going to be off the rails. Here come crazy.
- [66:20]
Bomani Jones
Like, yeah, don't. Don't answer too many questions about South African politics. You never know. Don't ask politics, period.
- [66:26]
Michael Collins
Don't ask politics, man. We all getting canceled. Don't ask no politics.
- [66:31]
Bomani Jones
But. No, but we had that run with Tiger and we all were like, well, he's going to pass Jack Nicklaus not quite understanding what the arc was and how a golf career actually progresses. But for me, it's one of those where it's like, maybe it's because I wasn't as invested in golf, or maybe it doesn't matter to me that he did not get to 19 majors. It doesn't matter to me that he didn't get to 15 majors. I was there for what it was.
- [66:55]
Michael Collins
Yes.
- [66:55]
Bomani Jones
And even the people who were there for what it was with Jack Nicklaus, it wasn't that. Like, like, they're not even saying it was that.
- [67:02]
Michael Collins
Well, the thing too is, like, everyone, including Jack Nicklaus, way back in the day, like, after this 2000, 2001, Jack Nicklaus said, tiger's gonna beat my major record. And he should do it pretty easily. As long as. And the as long as with everyone out there was, he stays healthy. I mean, and Tiger's not the only. You can go, wait, if we do a football analogy, like, what would Gail Sayers have been? I never saw Gail Sayers. All I seen was highlights. But it was like, the dude who I know growing up, who was going to be the great. What would Bo Jackson have done? That's the greatest comparison that you can make, because everyone looked and was like, oh, this is a breed of athlete we don't. We don't know. We haven't seen. And so for him, too, to be. Now when you look at Tiger and you're like, if. If he would have stayed healthy. And so for everyone else, you look at where you, like, you know, there are. Sometimes you look at and be like, we gotta. What do the numbers tell you? Sometimes that's a great thing, but there are other times it's like, yeah, the numbers can tell you something, but also the people that were there in the moment with him, and then the greats of the past that are still around and saw it as well and went, yeah, that dude better.
- [68:38]
Bomani Jones
Yeah.
- [68:39]
Michael Collins
And it's that I hope people understand that it's easy for us who aren't athletes at that level or anyone at levels like that. It is not easy to humble yourself. It's not easy to say, I was the best and now someone's better than me. Right. Like, you don't want to. It's. It's hard to give that title up because you understood what it took to get there and be there. And so to be able to look at another athlete and in the same sport and say, yeah, that dude had some skills that I didn't possess, it's not easy to do. So when, yes, Tiger's not catching Jack's record or breaking that record, but is he the greatest golfer of all time? It's going to be hard to say that dude's not the goat. Like, I don't know, someone who says, you know, Jack was better than. And it's. The comparison, too, is like, well, Jack played against more hall of Famers. We'll see. We'll see. And I love Jack to death. Like, I love, you know, I love him to death. I love Tiger to death and stuff like that. But if. If you put me in a. In a room and strapped me to a chair and there was some torture devices around, I'm. I'm gonna say, Tiger is the goat. Like, he's the billy goat, you know, Jack is close. He's up there, too. Like, Jack's a goat, you know? Is he the goat that got the biggest horns and stands on the top of the bridge? Nah, he stands just back from the bridge. He's looking at it like, you know, that used to be my bridge. Remember that?
- [70:34]
Bomani Jones
Ladies and gentlemen, that is Michael Collins. Check him out at espn covering golf. My man. We'll have to do it again, brother. Thank you so much.
- [70:41]
Michael Collins
It's been too long, man. I have so much enjoyment getting to chat with you, brother. And, like, watching you do your thing is, like. It warms my heart and my soul, bro. I love it, man. You. I know you don't know this, but, like, you inspire me, man. And thank you for that, bro.
- [70:59]
Bomani Jones
Dude, I appreciate you, man. Thank you so much. And ladies and gentlemen, thanks so much for joining us here on the Right Time. We do this four days a week. Ryan Brumley handles things behind the scenes. Thank you, sir. Hit our voicemail line 323-59-67767. Remember, follow the right time. Subscribe like, rate us, review us, give us five stars. You only give us four stars. I'm inclined to believe you are a hater. And we'll talk to you guys in a couple of days. Take it easy.