“I grew up in a different era” – Tiger Woods reveals why he is good with irons

Anyone who knows even a little to nothing about golf would surely know that US golfer Tiger Woods is one of the greatest golfers of all time.

But apart from his illustrious title wins, he is one of the best irons players in the circuit. In May last year, he got together with fellow US golfer and brilliant irons player Collin Morikawa to spill their iron striking secrets for TaylorMade Golf.

They were asked why did they think they were so good with irons. Tiger Woods answered first, saying he grew up in a "different era" where the ball would spin a lot. He learned to take the spin off it and slow everything down to get it out of the wind.

"Well for me, it's I've always have enjoyed, well I grew up in a different era. So I grew up in an era where the ball spun a lot more. So playing the wound ball and all that spin, I learned to really take spin off of it and slow everything down to try and get it out of the wind and out of this kicking up of the golf ball."

He further said that his process evolved in his teens, and his iron game improved in his 20s. It was because he had started slowing everything down and matching up. Tiger Woods said it was pretty good in the early 2000s.

"As that process started to evolve, as I got into my teens and into my early 20s is when my iron game got a lot better, because I started slowing everything down and started matching up everything. And then from there I got dialed in in the early 2000s and where it was it was pretty good."

Tiger Woods, however, added that if it were windy like it was the day he was shooting with TaylorMade Golf in May, he wouldn't have been able to get the seven iron very far. The ball's spinning enabled him to understand how to slow down everything when the ball got harder.

"It was one of those things where, if you had a day like today as windy as it is, I mean there's no chance that I would be able to get a seven iron that far. 160 yards would be some kind of five iron. Yeah just because the golf ball would spin so much but it allowed me to really understand how to slow everything down as the golf ball got harder."

Tiger Woods said he was "terrible" at putting a spin on a golf ball, but he was good at taking off the spin. So he always maintained the spinniest ball that he could get.

"I maintain the spinniest ball that is on market because I've been good at taking spin off the golf ball. I'm terrible at putting spin on a golf ball."

---

"I always thought yellow balls were for hacks" - Tiger Woods

Fred Couples with a yellow ball at the SAS Championship (Image via Eakin Howard/Getty Images)

Yellow golf balls have been gaining popularity amongst golfers in recent years. So much, so that manufacturing companies have begun adding a yellow cover on premium offerings.

While world-class golfers such as Bubba Watson and Fred Couples have embraced this technological development, the idea of them showing up on Tour has finally grown on Tiger Woods.

He was a bit wary of the concept of the yellow ball growing up. He talked about it recently on the Another Golf Podcast by Bridgestone Golf. He said:

"I always thought yellow balls were for hacks."

The yellow cover was typically found on the cheaper models used by beginners and handicapped players. However, a premium white cover structure was almost always used for the more expensive alternatives.

The reason for this growing popularity has more to do with the high visibility cover than a performance benefit or dropoff, as recent tests have confirmed. The yellow cover has higher visibility, making tracking the ball in flight much easier.

US golfer Fred Couples has sworn by the yellow ball for the past couple of years. And Tiger Woods always gave him some grief about it. Woods said:

"We give (Fred Couples) grief all the time about using the yellow ball. But he absolutely loves it because he can’t see anymore. You should see the front on his phone; it’s like one letter per screen."

Tiger Woods has reached an age where he admitted he occasionally needed glasses. However, with that, he also admitted that he would switch balls in a heartbeat if it helped him go low.

"My eyes are getting bad that I need my readers and cheaters, but I can still see (on the course). I don’t need a yellow ball. But if it’s guaranteeing me a 60, I’m using it every day."

Well, Fred Couples recently hit a phenomenal 60 in the final round to clinch the Champions Tour this year. That could push Tiger Woods to try out the yellow ball.