Johnny Miller Thinks Tiger Should 'Forget the Driver' at Players Championship

Johnny Miller, NBC's sometimes mercurial, always on-point golf analyst, loves Tiger Woods. Most of us do. The difference: Miller gushes about the world's No. 1 player on national television a half-dozen times a season; everybody else is relegated to worshiping Woods from the privacy of their own homes.

Either way, it probably wasn't easy for Miller to suggest that Woods, 14-time major winner, and owner of the best swing on the planet, should shelve his driver for the Players Championship. Via Golf Digest's Local Knowledge blog:

"He should hit a lot of stinger 3-woods and long irons to give himself the best chance to win. Forget the driver," Miller said.

Loyalties aside, Miller is a pragmatist. He also has a keen understanding of the golf swing, and more importantly, knows what it takes to win on tour. Which is why his "keep the driver at home" sentiments carry some weight. Last June, Miller called Phil Mickelson the favorite to win the U.S. Open because of how he drove the ball at the Players.

It didn't quite work out that way -- a one-legged Tiger outlasted the field at Torrey Pines for the most impressive win in the history of the sport. But I take the point: in general, if you're not hitting the fairways on tour, you're not winning. It's pretty simple, really.

Woods understands as much, but that doesn't mean he's playing with 13 clubs this week, either. Here's his response during a Tuesday news conference:

"We've got par-5s out here. You've got to be able to use it. I don't normally hit driver on 2. Sometimes it depends on wind. You've got to hit driver on 9 and got to hit driver on 11. And it depends on the wind what you do on 16. So if Johnny says you can't hit drivers on 9 and 11, you're giving up two opportunities to get close to the green."

Duly noted. You're also giving up two opportunities to get close to the green if your tee shot ends up 40 yards left of the fairway behind a stand of pine trees. Of course, Tiger knows this, and, presumably, he's working from the premise that he'll have his swing in shape by Thursday.

His last two tournaments -- the Masters and Quail Hollow -- suggest otherwise, but Woods has the unique ability to overcome obstacles that appear insurmountable to the rest of us. Driving the ball where he wants seems like a relatively straightforward proposition, even if recent history is working against Tiger.

While we wait to see how this plays out, something else to consider: "Three of the last four winners of the Players Championship led the field in driving accuracy for the week. This would tend to support Miller's position, that accuracy trumps distance on the Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass."

Maybe Tiger should borrow a page from the Mickelson playbook and use two drivers. Because, clearly, not carrying a driver is out of the question.