Goosen's 40th birthday an indicator to evaluate game
By Craig Dolch
Unlike other professional athletes, hitting the big 4-0 doesn't mean the end for golfers.
Just ask Vijay Singh, who has won a record 22 PGA TOUR events since turning 40. Or Mark O'Meara, who won both of his career majors at 41. Or, more recently, Kenny Perry, who at 48 has won four of his last 15 starts.
Still, Retief Goosen must hear the clock ticking. The two-time U.S. Open champion turned 40 on Feb. 3 and no longer is playing like the man whose talent and calm demeanor had him contending in most of the majors during the first half of this decade.
It's not like this Goose is cooked; every player goes through a lull or two during his career. Still, it wasn't long ago when he had climbed to No. 3 in the world and many golf insiders believed that Goosen -- not Singh, Phil Mickelson or Ernie Els -- provided the biggest threat to Tiger Woods' throne.
No longer. Goosen is 42nd in Official World Golf Ranking -- behind the likes of Ross Fisher and Shingo Katayama -- after finishing tied for 26th in last week's Buick Invitational, his opening act on the PGA TOUR this season.
When is Goosen going to turn it around? Is he going to turn it around?
Asked recently about the state of his game, Goosen said: "I have been working hard on my fitness and everything. I'm probably the fittest now that I've been in the last five years. I'm looking forward to the season ahead."
His physical fitness is slightly different than the fitness of his game, though.
Sure, Goosen can lay claim to something no other golfer, not even Woods, has done in the last 14 years: He's the only player to have won a professional title (either as an individual or as a team) every year since 1995.
But Goosen had to go to Malaysia last November to end a 21-month winless drought at the Iskandar Johor Open on the Asian Tour. Goosen added another win last month when he secured the South Africa Open title.
The depth of Goosen's struggles in the U.S. is surprising. He hasn't won on the PGA TOUR since the now-defunct INTERNATIONAL in 2005. That's a span of 56 events.
Moreover, Goosen had just two top 10s on the PGA TOUR last year. But both came in World Golf Championships events -- a second at the CA Championship and a fourth at the Bridgestone Invitational.
Goosen blames his slump on poor putting, but that's what most players say when they're not contending. You hit enough fairways and enough quality shots, you don't have to rely on your putter so much.
He was always at his best in the majors, but not recently. After winning the two U.S. Opens and finishing in the top 10 nine other times from 2001-07, Goosen's best showing in his last seven majors was 14th at last year's U.S. Open.
Tick, tick, tick.
About the only news Goosen made last year came when he suggested Woods was faking his knee injury at the U.S. Open, a comment that, like his putting, proved to be way off the mark. Goosen quickly apologized when he learned the severity of Woods' injury.
Goosen had his own health problems last year, when he needed emergency eye surgery to correct blurry vision. But he admits that was a temporary issue.
"I can see the hole, but my ball can't see the hole," he said, smiling.
Goosen has too much talent to simply fade away. He may have the appearance on the golf course that he doesn't care, but this was a guy who broke his share of racquets as a top junior tennis player in South Africa.
Goosen last year started working with a swing coach for the first time as a pro. That shows he hears the clock. And shows how much he cares.
"It's never easy when you've played well and you're struggling all of a sudden," Goosen said. "It's frustrating. You know you can hit the shots, but it's not happening."
Tick, tick, tick.
Craig Dolch is a freelance columnist for PGATOUR.COM. His views do not necessarily represent the views of the PGA TOUR.
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