Tiger Woods has been ‘very involved’ – DLIII

• US Ryder Cup captain hails assistant Woods
• “He’s been very accessible” says Davis Love III
• Woods will be vice-captain for first time next month 

Davis Love III has revealed that Tiger Woods has taken a hands-on approach to being a US vice-captain for next month’s Ryder Cup match at Hazeltine.

Former world No.1 Woods was named by Love as one of his assistants in February this year, the first time he has been handed such a responsibility.

Read more -> Tiger Woods is like a ‘collapsing house of cards’

The move raised eyebrows in some quarters, not least because of Woods’ poor record in the match. Indeed, in 33 matches across seven Ryder Cup appearances, he has lost 17 times, contributing just 14½ points to the American cause.

“He stays up late so he gives a lot of late night texts” – Davis Love III on Tiger Woods

However, speaking at the Wyndham Championship yesterday, where he was forced to withdraw from his title defence, captain Love said that Woods has been ‘always willing to help’.

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“He’s been very accessible,” said Love. “He stays up late, so he gives me a lot of late night texts.

“He’s very involved helping me make a lot of decisions. Because Jim and Steve are getting closer and closer to being in the mix for picks, I’ve been relying more on Tiger and Tom for the ‘What do we do about this or that?’ kind of decisions.”

Read more -> Inside Tiger Woods’ year from hell

Love added that having Tiger at the Ryder Cup put a slightly different spin on the proceedings, adding that “we’ve never had Tiger Woods walk around the Ryder Cup and not be playing”. In that respect, Love said it was comparable to last year’s Wyndham Championship, where Woods made his most recent competitive appearance.

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It was the first time Tiger had played in the event and, as a result, certain arrangements had to be made for his participation, which Love well recalls.

“He’s got a plan for where he thinks he can help out” – Davis Love III on Tiger Woods

“It was a different,” he said. “They had to plan for when he was going to arrive and where he’s going to walk as he had never been there before.

“He’s a great tactician, if that’s the right word, so he’s planning out his game plan for week. Obviously, there are a lot of issues with him. Like, if goes to check the pins, the whole gallery is going to go watch him and not watch the match. It will be interesting. He’s got a plan for where he thinks he can help out.”

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Tiger Woods: Do you think he’ll be a good vice-captain?

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Michael McEwan is the Deputy Editor of bunkered and has been part of the team since 2004. In that time, he has interviewed almost every major figure within the sport, from Jack Nicklaus, to Rory McIlroy, to Donald Trump. The host of the multi award-winning bunkered Podcast and a member of Balfron Golfing Society, Michael is the author of three books and is the 2023 PPA Scotland 'Writer of the Year' and 'Columnist of the Year'. Dislikes white belts, yellow balls and iron headcovers. Likes being drawn out of the media ballot to play Augusta National.

Deputy Editor