FORMER WORLD NUMBER one Tiger Woods remains confident of catching Jack Nicklaus’ all-time record of 18 major championship victories.
Woods appeared certain to overhaul Nicklaus when he lifted the 14th major of his career with victory at the 2008 US Open.
But no-one could have predicted what happened next – one of the most recognisable athletes in the world endured a stunning fall from grace after revelations of serial infidelity, which came to light in December 2009, led to a public divorce.
The fallout from the scandal, coupled with a succession of serious injury problems, saw Woods plummet from the pinnacle of his sport to a low of 58th in the world by November 2011.
He also endured the longest winless run of his professional career, finally claiming his first victory for 107 weeks at the Chevron World Challenge in December last year.
Woods won again at the Arnold Palmer Invitational in March, but there are now major doubts over the 36-year-old’s ability to win the five majors he requires to surpass Nicklaus.
“I figure it’s going to take a career,” he said prior to the PGA Tour’s Memorial Tournament, which begins in Dublin, Ohio, on Thursday.
It took Jack 24 years, and this is my 17th year into it. I still feel like I have plenty of time – it’s about giving myself the greatest amount of opportunities to win them on the back nine on Sunday.
“The more chances I give myself, I figure I’m going to clip a few of them.”
Woods, a four-time winner at Memorial, continues to struggle for consistency after rebuilding his action with Canadian swing coach Sean Foley.
Despite two successive missed cuts at the Zurich Classic and Wells Fargo Championship in April and May, Woods insists he and Foley are making progress.
“We’re excited by what we’re working on,” he said.
“I hadn’t played well in a couple of weeks but we know what it is. It’s a matter of getting reps in and getting the trust in the swing.”
