BUTCH HARMON is the man who helped to turn Tiger Woods from teenage prodigy into the greatest golfer in the world. He sprinkled magic dust on Woods’s swing and a brilliant but erratic amateur grew into a brilliantly consistent professional.

The duo had been working together at the top of golf’s pecking order for nine years when suddenly, during the US PGA Championship five weeks ago, Woods began to back away from his mentor. Rumours circulated that they had split. Woods denied them. “Well, has your relationship changed at all?” he was asked.

“Yes, it has changed,” Woods replied. “Every player, as you get a little bit better and you understand your own mechanics, you understand your game, you don’t rely on a teacher quite as often. I still need Butch, yes, but not as much as I used to, because I’ve got a better understanding of my own game and the faults that I have, and how to fix them.”

The announcement forced Harmon into a frenzy of damage limitation. The man who had been star-maker, coach and ally to Woods for almost a decade was caught in the headlights as he attempted to answer a string of questions about his relationship. Did Woods really think that he could go it alone now? Had Harmon’s penchant for television and newspaper coverage forced the famously discrete Woods to back away from him? “No, no and no again,” Harmon said. “That’s simply not true. Tiger and I are still working together. Would we be working together if he had problems with me and didn’t like me appearing on television? Would we have stayed together for so long?”

Why do you think Woods changed your relationship? “Because he no longer needs a full-time coach. He’ll call me when he needs help and I will do damage control for Tiger. It suits me — it means that I can do more work with my other clients and he only uses me when he needs me, which is when I want to work with him.

“Way too much has been made of my relationship with Tiger. Not spending as much time with Tiger will enable me to spend more time with my other golfers.”

Of course, not everyone believes him. Harmon may claim that this is just a switch from full-time to part-time employment, but many interpret Woods’s need for more space between them as a sign that the partnership has run its course.

Does Harmon believe that Woods will be better without him as coach? “I believe that I have lots to contribute and I believe that I will continue to work with Tiger,” he said, slowly. “As soon as he has any problems, he will call.”

But how will Woods know he has problems? Harmon has been his eyes and ears since Woods made it to the top.

“Tiger is the best player in the world. He doesn’t need a swing coach. All he needs is a set of eyes and either I’ll do it or Mark O’Meara will do it.” Does Harmon think that Woods’s game will be adversely affected by the change? “I think Tiger will continue to be the world No 1, if that’s what you mean.”

His tone was defensive. Certainly, his attitude was vastly different from when I first interviewed him, before the announcement by Woods. Harmon was in a lively, jovial mood then and happy to talk. It did not take 14 phone calls before he would agree to speak to me, as it did on the second occasion. The first time, his loud voice had boomed out, explaining how his relationship with Woods worked so well and how the two of them survived so long and achieved so much.

“Hey, Tiger is great,” he had said back then in his all-American way, pausing dramatically between the words to emphasise their meaning. “I go with him to all the major events and watch what he’s doing. I can spot instantly when something goes wrong. I have a checklist in my mind — it’s like a doctor looking at an X-ray. I can look straight through and see all the problems beneath the skin. As long as I’m always there and watching, we know we can sort any potential problems out almost before they arise.

“Tiger has a tremendous amount of talent. He’s a gladiator. He’s the most talented player and he’s a very hard worker, so as long as I can provide him with all the information about what to work on he can continue getting it right and his golf will continue to improve.”

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