He started strong with a third at the Sony
Open, a fourth at the Honda Classic and a
runner-up finish at the prestigious Wachovia
Championship. He closed the year even stronger,
birdieing four of the last five holes to
win the Barclays during the FedEx Cup
playoffs, finishing second to Woods in the
seasonlong FedEx standings and scoring
three points for the U.S. team at the Presidents
Cup in Montreal.
Stricker's summer wasn't exactly wasted, either. He was in contention at the U.S. and British opens before settling for 13th and a tie for eighth, respectively. He also finished second to K.J. Choi at the inaugural AT&T National.
That's in stark contrast to the years from 2003 through '05, when Stricker's game got so ugly that he failed to qualify for 11 out of 12 majors and finished no better than 151st on the money list.
"I don't mind talking about it," Stricker says of his three years in golf purgatory. "My mental approach wasn't too good. The feelings I had in my swing weren't too good, either. The club crossed the line at the top, and my tempo was bad. Not hard things to fix, but it took time to address them all."
The tempo issue, for example, reflected a sense of urgency.
"My thought process on the course was rushed and hurried. I didn't feel confident with my swing and that led to rushing my swing, which led to bad tempo" — he smiles at the circularity — "which led to a bad swing."
Was it anxiety? "Had to be," he says.
Mirror, mirror on the wall, who's the best sports psychologist of all?
Only, Stricker didn't go that route. "I felt I could find my own way," he says. "I knew what the problems were, some of the issues I had."
When introspection wasn't enough, he turned to his wife and to his father-in-law and longtime coach, Dennis Tiziani, who's the retired golf coach at the University of Wisconsin. (Stricker is an Illinois graduate.)
"There's a trust that he has with both of us," says Nicki, who caddied for Steve during his early years on Tour. "He's always been pretty set in his ways, but he doesn't bottle it up. He can say what he feels."
Stricker can also charm. Woods calls him "one of the alltime nicest guys you'll ever meet."
A cousin following him at the Match Play cited the case of a man from Phoenix who rode on an elevator with Stricker years ago, "before Steve was really known," and became a committed fan because the golfer stuck out his hand and asked his name.
"With Steve, it's never about him," says Tiziani. "He has a feel for people. He knows what they're thinking before they do."
Stricker's summer wasn't exactly wasted, either. He was in contention at the U.S. and British opens before settling for 13th and a tie for eighth, respectively. He also finished second to K.J. Choi at the inaugural AT&T National.
That's in stark contrast to the years from 2003 through '05, when Stricker's game got so ugly that he failed to qualify for 11 out of 12 majors and finished no better than 151st on the money list.
"I don't mind talking about it," Stricker says of his three years in golf purgatory. "My mental approach wasn't too good. The feelings I had in my swing weren't too good, either. The club crossed the line at the top, and my tempo was bad. Not hard things to fix, but it took time to address them all."
The tempo issue, for example, reflected a sense of urgency.
"My thought process on the course was rushed and hurried. I didn't feel confident with my swing and that led to rushing my swing, which led to bad tempo" — he smiles at the circularity — "which led to a bad swing."
Was it anxiety? "Had to be," he says.
Mirror, mirror on the wall, who's the best sports psychologist of all?
Only, Stricker didn't go that route. "I felt I could find my own way," he says. "I knew what the problems were, some of the issues I had."
When introspection wasn't enough, he turned to his wife and to his father-in-law and longtime coach, Dennis Tiziani, who's the retired golf coach at the University of Wisconsin. (Stricker is an Illinois graduate.)
"There's a trust that he has with both of us," says Nicki, who caddied for Steve during his early years on Tour. "He's always been pretty set in his ways, but he doesn't bottle it up. He can say what he feels."
Stricker can also charm. Woods calls him "one of the alltime nicest guys you'll ever meet."
A cousin following him at the Match Play cited the case of a man from Phoenix who rode on an elevator with Stricker years ago, "before Steve was really known," and became a committed fan because the golfer stuck out his hand and asked his name.
"With Steve, it's never about him," says Tiziani. "He has a feel for people. He knows what they're thinking before they do."
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