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PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. — Struggling golfers are like characters out of “The Emperor’s New Clothes,’’ the famous Hans Christian Andersen tale. They spin fine narratives full of pleasing patterns — even if, in reality, there is nothing to see.
Thus, after a round with multiple three-putts, a player will talk about all the good reads that went unrewarded. An erratic driver of the ball will laud his swing.
This relentless positivity in the face of failure was recently remarked upon by the retired football star Peyton Manning. After playing a pro-am round with Tiger Woods last month, Manning, a two-time Super Bowl-winning quarterback, said, tongue in cheek: “I always wanted to do a football news conference the similar way a golfer does: ‘I had a great stretch today, I got all my handoffs, I got every snap.