Woods the last of his kind

Tiger Woods

Pádraig Harrington believes the days when players like Tiger Woods could dominate for 20 years or more are coming to an end.

The Dubliner (46) tees it up in the European Tour's D+D Real Czech Masters where Thomas Pieters, Eddie Pepperell and Matt Wallace are the young guns seeking Ryder Cup qualifying points.

Harrington's still hoping that he can eke out another victory and extend his winning span on tour to 23 seasons.

But as he looks across the pond to The Northern Trust in New Jersey and Woods' bid to become a viable FedEx Cup contender by winning in his 23rd season, he knows that the day when players could expect to win throughout a 20 or 25-year career will soon go the way of the dodo.

“Definitely the depth of players and strength of players in the game has gotten better," Harrington said of an era that has given us seven different world number ones since Woods last held that ranking four years ago. 

"At the moment there is no dominant force in the game like Tiger Woods in the early 2000s. It’s hard now to distinguish yourselves as great players for young guys. 

“We won’t see careers like Tiger’s and Phil Mickelson’s, winning throughout their careers for about 25 years. I think we will see shorter careers because the strength in depth is just so much deeper.”

Woods might be 42 and playing just his 15th PGA Tour event since returning to the fairways following what he called "last ditch" spinal fusion surgery.

But after contending to win both The Open and the US PGA over the past month, the 14-time major believes he’s closer than ever to claiming an 80th PGA Tour title during the FedExCup Playoffs that would leave him just two shy of matching Sam Snead’s all-time record.

"I feel my next wins are coming soon," Woods said. "How soon, I don't know, but I'm putting myself there in tournaments now. 

"I've done it two of the last three tournaments I've played in and they were big events, so I'm not that far away from getting it done."

Now 26th in the world having begun his comeback ranked 1119th, Woods could rise as high as 12th if he wins at Ridgewood Country Club on Sunday.

But given his miraculous recovery, even the man who once refused to countenance anything less than a "W" as a success now admits that 2018 is already a success.

"No doubt. No doubt," Woods said in New Jersey yesterday, where he reiterated his desire to play in the Ryder Cup. "To have a winless year but to go through what I’ve gone through … I didn’t know if I was going to play again.

"I was hoping just to play golf with kids and my buddies at home. I wasn't thinking about the tour and now here I am, contending in major championships and I've had a chance to win a couple of major championships. 

"So, this has been a blessing. But man, it's been so special to have this opportunity again. I am certainly not taking it for granted, that's for sure."

Heartened by the warmth of the fans towards him all season, like them, he knows the end is nigh.

"They know I am at the tail-end of my career. I don't know how many more years I have left. But I am certainly not like I was when I was 22. At 42 it's a different ball game."

Asked if breaking Snead's record was an important step towards beating Jack Nicklaus' record of 18 major wins, he joked: "Well, it's simple math. In order to get to Jack's ultimate 18, I've got to pass Sam's. 

"I have been close to winning a couple of tournaments this year and if I keep giving myself opportunities, I will get the job done."