He left Tucson after a third-round loss to
U.S. Open champ Angel Cabrera but not
before avenging his playoff loss to Chopra
and dispatching Hunter Mahan by
holing a putt from clear across the green
on the 20th hole.
After sitting out the Honda last week, Stricker stood sixth on the FedEx Cup point list. You'd assume he's paid a hefty price for this success — sold his soul, neglected his family, made enemies. You'd assume wrong.
"Golf isn't everything to me," Stricker says over a quesadilla lunch at Cherokee Country Club in Madison. "I love it, don't get me wrong, but I'd be just as happy with my life back here."
It's a life that revolves around Nicki, their two daughters (Bobbi, 9, and Isabella, 22 months) and a Wisconsin lifestyle that includes deer hunting within earshot of the golf range.
"I can walk out my back door for a couple of hours of hunting in the evening," he says. "It's relaxing for me. It takes concentration, but while you're on the stand, you can let your mind wander."
Tournaments, by way of contrast, still put him on edge. "You enjoy it after the fact," he says. "You say, 'That was fun.' But it's not a walk in the park hitting golf shots. You're puking your guts out coming down the stretch."
He once asked veteran touring pro Jay Haas how Haas kept going, year after year, tournament after tournament. Haas said, "You have to prepare and try your hardest — and when you're on the road, don't wish you were at home."
"I've struggled with that," Stricker says. "I miss my family and want to be at home."
Children are the mirrors of our souls, so you watch closely as Stricker, with Isabella on his lap, helps her with a coloring book. He colors one of Cookie Monster's eyes green and the other eye red. You ask yourself, Is this really the fourth-best golfer in the world?
Maybe you ask it out loud, because Tiziani leans across the table and says, "There's only one guy today who's better than Steve. And Steve still has room to improve, that's what's so exciting. He didn't putt as good as he should have in '07."
Without being asked, Tiziani predicts "two wins and a Ryder Cup" for Stricker in '08. "We simply haven't identified the wins yet," he says with a chuckle. "There's one in April that would be great." (Stricker's best finish at Augusta was a tie for 10th in 2001.) Stricker is too cautious to echo his father-in-law's boasts, but he won't concede that's he's overrated, either.
He says, "It's a bomber's game now, and I'm getting older. I'm not hitting it as long. But there's a ton of different ways to get the ball in the hole. I can get it done with my short game and trying to drive it into the fairway."
So, yes, you decide, when Stricker looks back at his practice mirror, he sees a world No. 4. He also sees clouds of breath vapor, a golf mat, a snow-covered field and — what he's really looking for — confirmation that his club isn't crossing the line at the top.
You're pretty sure it isn't.
After sitting out the Honda last week, Stricker stood sixth on the FedEx Cup point list. You'd assume he's paid a hefty price for this success — sold his soul, neglected his family, made enemies. You'd assume wrong.
"Golf isn't everything to me," Stricker says over a quesadilla lunch at Cherokee Country Club in Madison. "I love it, don't get me wrong, but I'd be just as happy with my life back here."
It's a life that revolves around Nicki, their two daughters (Bobbi, 9, and Isabella, 22 months) and a Wisconsin lifestyle that includes deer hunting within earshot of the golf range.
"I can walk out my back door for a couple of hours of hunting in the evening," he says. "It's relaxing for me. It takes concentration, but while you're on the stand, you can let your mind wander."
Tournaments, by way of contrast, still put him on edge. "You enjoy it after the fact," he says. "You say, 'That was fun.' But it's not a walk in the park hitting golf shots. You're puking your guts out coming down the stretch."
He once asked veteran touring pro Jay Haas how Haas kept going, year after year, tournament after tournament. Haas said, "You have to prepare and try your hardest — and when you're on the road, don't wish you were at home."
"I've struggled with that," Stricker says. "I miss my family and want to be at home."
Children are the mirrors of our souls, so you watch closely as Stricker, with Isabella on his lap, helps her with a coloring book. He colors one of Cookie Monster's eyes green and the other eye red. You ask yourself, Is this really the fourth-best golfer in the world?
Maybe you ask it out loud, because Tiziani leans across the table and says, "There's only one guy today who's better than Steve. And Steve still has room to improve, that's what's so exciting. He didn't putt as good as he should have in '07."
Without being asked, Tiziani predicts "two wins and a Ryder Cup" for Stricker in '08. "We simply haven't identified the wins yet," he says with a chuckle. "There's one in April that would be great." (Stricker's best finish at Augusta was a tie for 10th in 2001.) Stricker is too cautious to echo his father-in-law's boasts, but he won't concede that's he's overrated, either.
He says, "It's a bomber's game now, and I'm getting older. I'm not hitting it as long. But there's a ton of different ways to get the ball in the hole. I can get it done with my short game and trying to drive it into the fairway."
So, yes, you decide, when Stricker looks back at his practice mirror, he sees a world No. 4. He also sees clouds of breath vapor, a golf mat, a snow-covered field and — what he's really looking for — confirmation that his club isn't crossing the line at the top.
You're pretty sure it isn't.
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