One of the biggest comebacks ever was by golfer Tiger Woods when he won his fifth Masters tournament recently, a victory that came after more than after a decade of virtual obscurity due to multiple personal problems and injuries.
I had followed this golfer’s progress as he closed in on the record of most tournaments ever won. I thought of Tiger as an ideal and universal athlete partially due to his ethnicity. His mother is of mixed Thai, Chinese, and Dutch ancestry with some suggestion that she had Native American and Chinese ancestry as well; his father mostly African American with traces of European descent. Tiger Woods was indeed a man of all ‘races’.
Author Bruce Lansky said, “We learn so many things from golf – how to suffer, for instance.”
I suffered too while playing golf intermittently. Only one shot over that long stretch and the only birdie I ever had still sticks out. It was a short hole at the Island Brae golf course, the tee-off on a hill overlooking the green sitting alongside a highway, half-surrounded by water. Not much of a legacy at all!
It was Toronto Maple Leafs playing the Boston Bruins in the playoffs in 2013. The series was tied at three games each. Leafs were leading by 3 goals in the third period. Could it be the start of a comeback – finally? However, Boston came back with 4 unanswered goals, winning in overtime. Best comeback, or the worst Game 7 collapse in NHL history? I say both.
I had sort of a comeback myself. Inflicted with meningitis in 2015, totally debilitating and meant hospitalization for about five weeks. I was as helpless as a two-year old -– not able to take one step, grasp a glass of water or make it to the bathroom on my own. I’ll never forget one exhilarating moment: I was getting help to get back on my feet. One day, the physio aide had me try a walker. I tore off down that hallway like a bat out of hell, so excited. Later I was transferred to a room near rehabilitation. The first evening, a lady was brought into the second bed. No temptation there, neither of us could barely move. I eventually regained my strength and faculties, eager to resume regular activities.
Regarding Steve Jobs in 2005 who said, “I didn’t see it then, but it turned out that getting fired from Apple was the best thing that could have ever happened to me.” He started his second company, NeXT, which was ultimately acquired by Apple and Jobs became CEO of Apple Computers once again.
A popular singer on the country music scene was Willie Nelson who had recorded 68 albums. However, he ran into tax problems, owing millions to the IRS: his accountants hadn’t paid his taxes for years. Afterwards he worked even harder and ultimately paid off his debts. He’s been recording ever since, more popular now, earning a notable reputation for bouncing back after being debt-ridden.
Not that many years ago, Martha Stewart, the founder of the company that bears her name, became America’s first self-made female billionaire. Five years after her company went public, she became embroiled in a tax scheme conspiracy and went to prison for her role. Upon her release, she launched her comeback campaign immediately. The company that she held onto became profitable again within a year; her dinner and dessert recipes as good as they had been.
Even Mark Twain, one of the greatest American writers, made some bad business decisions. He was broke and bankrupt by 1894. 20 years later his persistence paid off and all debts honoured. Eventually he became super-famous as the author of ‘The Adventures of Tom Sawyer’.
Philanthropist Jeremy Bloom believed,” If going to succeed, you can’t dwell on your setbacks or missed opportunities, and you definitely can’t allow them to define you. When dealing with adversity, there are really only two kinds of people, splatters and bouncers. When splatters hit rock bottom, they fall apart and stick to the bottom like glue. On the other hand, when bouncers hit bottom, they pull together and bounce back. The good news is that knowing how to deal with misfortune is a learned skill, not something born with. The most important step to overcome a problem and negative feelings is not to flounder. It’s crucial to set a deadline for accepting emotionally what has happened.
When we screw up or things go wrong, we have one of two choices. We can either give up and wallow in self-pity or fight back like a Tiger Woods or a Willie Nelson to make a comeback and soak up the sunshine.
