Going the distance with Tiger

The only two players who ever went the distance in a major with Tiger Woods are Bobby May at the 2000 PGA Championship and Rocco Mediate at the 2008 U.S. Open in Torrey Pines. And I know just how they did it, because it's something I taught them.

I've known Bobby since he was just a boy, setting a bunch of Southern California junior records that wouldn't be broken until you-know-who rose through the SoCal junior ranks a handful of years later.

But I didn't know Rocco until the 2007 AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am. I was there to watch Bobby and Duffy Waldorf (who played for me at UCLA) and I ran into Rocco on the range. He told me he wanted to come see me next week at Bel-Air Country Club, where I teach.

The next week, when the Tour stopped in Los Angeles at Riviera, Rocco and I worked together over three days. He was happy with his long game that he developed with his coach, Jimmy Ballard. What Rocco needed to work on was the psychology of playing, rhythm and tempo, short-game shots and putting. He told me he was looking for an "old-school" teacher. I often joke that just because I'm 76 years old doesn't mean I'm old school, but I know what he meant. We worked on putting: things like getting Rocco to keep the clubhead off the ground before making his stroke. We also talked about the temperament you need to succeed.

And yes, that fun-loving Rocco you saw on TV at Torrey Pines is the same guy I met. He's very personable. He does a lot of playing around with the caddies, but he's always under control and considerate of other people. I enjoy his company, just like I enjoy working with any player who wants to learn from me.

I don't know how much of it was my doing, but Rocco started playing better. He finished 10th at Riviera and then came in second at Bay Hill. But he was fighting his bad back and didn't qualify for the U.S. Open at Oakmont. Then at the PGA Championship at Southern hills, he shot 72 the first day (39 going out and 33 coming in), but had to withdraw because of his back.

So when I saw him at Torrey Pines I was happy to see that he was in the best physical condition I've seen since I've known him. I was there for the practice rounds, but had to leave Thursday. But when I saw Rocco playing so well, I knew I had to go back down. I spoke to him on the practice tee Sunday and left him with two parting thoughts: play with a smile on your face and play positively. If you play tentatively, you have little chance to succeed and if you play negatively you have zero chance. Only when you play positively can you do your very best.

You saw those smiles from Rocco on the course. But it was more than smiles that helped Rocco go toe-to-toe with Tiger, and the same was true for Bobby at the PGA Championship eight years ago.

The reason they were able to go the distance with Tiger is that they really weren't playing Tiger. Sure, that's what it looked like on TV, and the media loves the "David versus Goliath" match-ups, but in both cases Rocco and Bobby were relating to Old Man Par, they were just in the company of the greatest player on the planet.

And so was Tiger. Both he and Rocco were in their own game, and that's how they were able to tune out all the distractions. Sure, in the playoff round, they were like a couple stage performers, playing off one another and bringing out the best in each other. But more than that they were relating to Old Man Par. If Tiger and Rocco had been trying to play each other, I doubt either man would have played as well.