Tiger Woods only has himself to blame

Tiger Woods’ complaints about camera phones are another example of how he is a victim of his own success.

Everyone wants to catch a glimpse of Tiger in the flesh and he always has the largest galleries following him at every tournament he plays.

Throw in the TV cameras, radio reporters, analysts like myself, photographers and marshals and it’s a veritable circus.

With all those people around him, it’s no surprise that someone wants a memory of when they saw the great Tiger Woods.

He may get fed up with it at times, but it’s a compliment to the 14 Majors he’s won.

I didn’t follow Woods round Royal Liverpool on the first two days, but this problem about camera phones wasn’t an issue for Phil Mickelson, Adam Scott or Justin Rose.

I can honestly say I’ve not noticed anything out of the ordinary. It only seems to happen in Woods’ group.

If anything, part of the problem is the entourage that Woods brings with him. They are super sensitive to anything to do with ‘their man’.

But obviously spectators should not take a photo of Tiger when he is lining up to play. Every player deserves that courtesy.

But I don’t have a problem whatsoever with people using their cameras when he’s walking off the tee or up to his ball.

I followed Bubba Watson on Thursday and he had to step away a few times because he was put off by TV cameras.

At the Ryder Cup in 2012, Bubba and Ian Poulter wanted the noise of the fans on the first tee and teed off while they were cheering.

While Graeme McDowell said he was put off when the crowd suddenly went silent as he was taking the first shot!

Think of the 16th at the tournament in Phoenix, where 15,000 fans gather round the par-three and make tremendous noise.

Fans cheer if the competitors hit it onto the green and boo if they miss it. It’s like a football crowd, but players embrace it!

Bubba didn’t seem to mind the noise at Medinah but he wasn’t so keen on it here when he wasn’t playing so well.

He was struggling with his game and, like any golfer, he was looking for any little excuse for his troubles. It’s the old story when you’re playing well, you don’t hear anything.

Woods complained about mobile phones when The Open was last played at Hoylake in 2006, and they were subsequently banned until 2012.

But that won’t happen now. The R&A have embraced technology and they want to improve the experience for spectators on the course.

A ban on mobiles and cameras would be a backward step. Fans can follow the action on their smart phones and there is free Wi-Fi all over the course.

Eagle-eyed viewers at home will also have noticed that digital scoreboards have been introduced on every hole to keep people updated.

The R&A have made a conscious decision to move with the times as they enter the electronic era.

The stands at Hoylake are full and people are spending less time following groups round.

They want to sit in the stands, keep one eye on a specific hole and watch or listen to what’s going on elsewhere on their phones.

However, you want to keep track of the action, and let’s hope we’re set for a thrilling afternoon.

The Champion golfer will be the player who deals best with everything The Open throws up wind, bad bounces, and now camera phones!