No time was wasted when Tiger Woods was asked about Jack Nicklaus's comment about needing "to learn to win again."
When asked after his pro-am portion of Jack Nicklaus' Memorial Tournament how he felt about Nicklaus' comment, Woods was pragmatic in his response.
"I think this understanding of what it takes to finish it off and get a W. I’ve been on runs where it came pretty easy, getting Ws, and other stretches where it was very difficult," he said.
"This is a little different because I’m coming back off not really playing for a while, and I remember the feelings (of) when I was at Valspar. I had a chance to win there, get second and it really felt comfortable. The last few times I had a chance I was up there on the board and I felt very comfortable.”
When the topic of Woods winning a tournament for the first time since 2013 came up Tuesday, Nicklaus said he never counted Woods out of contention.
"He has got to get through the barrier of not having done it for a while," Nicklaus said. "When you haven't won that always happens, and that's human nature.
"But when you got a guy that's as good as he is and as competitive as he is, he'll break through that barrier. I wouldn't be a bit surprised to see Tiger win this week, not at all. I think he's playing well, I think he loves the golf course; he's always played well here, and his remembrance of what he's done here will come back into his head. That will help him play better."
Pro-am partner Petyon Manning also heaped praise on Woods after their round together Wednesday morning, saying he was doing well and that he understands what it's like to try and come back after a hard surgery and recovery.
"It’s about being flexible, being adaptive," Manning said. "I couldn’t throw the ball the same way after my injury. But you learn to use your experience and football intellect. Obviously, that’s what he’s doing. He’s adjusted his game, his swing, using his experience and using other parts of his body to get some strength and power. Like I said, for a golf fan, it’s great to see him back out here — and he sure is hitting the ball well today.”