There is no instrument in sports that has as much integrity as a putter. Not only is it the most important club in a golfer's bag, but the flat stick just does not lie. You remember Graeme McDowell? Of course you do. He is arguably the most accomplished and relevant sportsman to have played competitively in Hong Kong over the last year when he appeared this past November at the Hong Kong Open. At the time he was not only the reigning US Open champion, but also the hero of Europe's dramatic Ryder Cup victory over the United States.
As 2010 began, McDowell was a largely anonymous golfer from Northern Ireland who had talent but few meaningful accomplishments. One year later he is the best golfer in the world and the reason is simple: he is putting better than any living human being. More importantly, he has inherited the title of the best clutch putter in the world from the once ruthless Tiger Woods and this is no small issue.
The way a man, or woman, putts reveals who they are. McDowell has peace in his world, Tiger does not. McDowell is cold-blooded, Tiger is a punchline. When the US PGA season officially teed off last weekend, McDowell and Woods were firmly established as the two most compelling characters in all of golf. McDowell because of his daring propensity for making a final-round charge and Woods because he is currently unable to make a final-round charge, despite redefining the genre over the past 13 years or so.
Physically and mentally they are polar opposites. McDowell shows little outward sign of being a world-class athlete. He is a slightly paunchy Irishman with a ready and accommodating smile who gives of himself freely. Tiger is, or at least was, an off-putting and intimidating sort who stridently flaunted a chiseled and athletic bulk the likes of which had never been seen before in golf. They have absolutely nothing in common other than the ability to make putts when it matters, which is why their budding rivalry could be the best thing to happen to golf in years.
Of course there are other tremendous players, the sport of golf has never been deeper. England's Lee Westwood is the world's number one ranked player but until he wins a major championship his ranking is hollow. And of course Phil Mickelson may be more talented than anyone in golf but his rivalry with Tiger seems almost stale. There is also a plethora of young and strapping players under the age of 30 who hit the ball a half a mile and absolutely annihilate most of the courses they play on.
Still, it's McDowell and Tiger who will draw the eyeballs this year. When they met last month on the final day at the Chevron World Challenge, Woods had a four-stroke lead in a desperate bid to win his first tournament of 2010. A few hours later, McDowell would prevail in a play-off after making one big putt after another while Woods visibly wilted from the pressure.