Although Tiger Woods retains an ability to do the unexpected, Paul McGinley isn't certain that the American golfer's preparation is conducive to success at The Open in Portrush.
It remains to be seen whether Tiger Woods' triumph at the Masters in Augusta was the final flicker of a glistening career, or the resurrection of a winning habit.
A few months shy of his 44th birthday, Woods' arrival in Portrush will generate plenty of anticipation that he can add a fourth Open title to his collection this weekend.
Yet, in his analysis of the American golfer's build-up to the year's final major, Paul McGinley believes it will take something special for Woods to compensate for what has been his less than ideal preparation for the competition.
"He's Tiger Woods, arguably the greatest player we've ever seen play the game and the strongest mentally," surmised McGinley when it came to determining Woods' hopes of winning, "can he just turn it on? Yes, but doing it along the schedule he's doing is the exception rather than the norm."
Since securing a fifth Masters win in mid-April, Woods has only competed in three further tournaments; the PGA and US Open championships coming either side of a ninth-place finish at the Memorial Tournament in June.
For McGinley, this schedule scarcely appears to be in keeping with how Woods has previously generated success.
"If you look at his performances in the last 12-months, he won a Tour Championship at the end of last year but played a heavy schedule going into it.
"Yes, he got the Ryder Cup the next week, was shattered and played rubbish but the point was that he'd played a heavy schedule and that had culminated in a win.
"If you look at earlier this year he played five tournament in eight or nine weeks ahead of The Masters, and then he won.
"So, when he plays an awful lot of golf in toward the big majors, then that's when he seems to win.
"We've seen since that that he is playing virtually no golf, just major championships, and it is very difficult to prepare, even if you are Tiger Woods, to go from one major championship to having a month off and on to the next major championship which is what he's done."
One of the competitors set to be under the closest scrutiny as The Open tees off tomorrow morning, Tiger Woods will take to the course alongside Matt Wallace and Patrick Reed at 15:10.
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