Tranlate this title Butch Harmon shares important lesson from his time with Woods and Norman in spanish

Butch Harmon has worked with many famous golfers during his long coaching career, but Tiger Woods and Greg Norman are two players who left a special impression on him.

The 83-year-old American believes that the two former world No. 1 golfers had something in common that separated them from many others. Although both had a lot of natural talent, Harmon stressed that their dedication to practice was what he remembered the most.

During his recent appearance on The Real Deal podcast, the legendary coach spoke about working with Woods and Norman, explaining how both players were determined to remain at the top once they reached the No. 1 ranking.

The American started coaching Norman in 1991, when the Australian was going through a difficult period after losing his top ranking to Nick Faldo.

Two years later, Woods also started working with Harmon. Their partnership lasted for more than a decade and included some of the most successful moments of the 15-time major champion’s career.

Harmon admitted that Norman was one of the players who attracted the most interest from golf fans during his playing days.

«Greg was the man. He was the one who moved the needle at all the tournaments; the people wanted to see the great white shark. His talent level was amazing,» Harmon said.

The veteran coach also recalled how both golfers continued working even after achieving their biggest goals.

«The one thing I learned from the two best players that I took to No. 1 in the world, Greg and Tiger [Woods], who [both] stayed there a long time, was that they outworked everybody else. When they got to No. 1, they wanted to stay there, and they worked harder and harder.»

Harmon added that he had rarely seen anyone dedicate as much time to improving their game as the Australian.

Harmon remembers working with Greg Norman

Norman spent 331 weeks as the world’s top-ranked golfer and won two Open Championship titles during his career.

His first Open victory happened in 1986, five years before he started working with Harmon. However, the Australian added another title in 1993, defeating Nick Faldo by two strokes at Royal St George’s.

The former world No. 1 also won the Players Championship in 1994, another important achievement during his partnership with the American coach.

In an earlier interview, Harmon recalled that Norman initially had problems with his swing and needed to change how his hips moved during the downswing.

The experienced coach explained that the Australian was prepared to spend a lot of time making those changes, despite the difficulties he experienced.

Norman eventually returned to the No. 1 ranking in 1993, something that meant a lot to both men after their work together.

However, the Australian also experienced some disappointing moments, including his defeat at the 1996 Masters.

Norman entered the final round with a six-shot advantage over Faldo, but finished with a 78 and lost to the Englishman by five strokes.

Harmon and Norman ended their partnership in 1996, although the American has continued to speak positively about the former two-time major winner.

Harmon also learned a lot from Tiger Woods

The American coach first met Woods in August 1993, when the future golf legend was only 17 years old.

Harmon previously explained that Tiger already had incredible speed in his swing, although there were several things that needed improvement.

Their partnership produced eight major championships, including Woods’ first Masters victory in 1997.

The American won at Augusta National by 12 strokes, becoming the youngest Masters champion at the age of 21.

Despite that success, Woods decided that he wanted to make changes to his swing.

Harmon initially suggested making those changes gradually, knowing that the process could affect the golfer’s results.

However, Tiger wanted to work on everything immediately, and the following season was quite difficult compared to what fans had seen in 1997.

The situation improved in 1999, when Woods won eight PGA Tour events.

A year later, the American enjoyed one of the best seasons in golf history, taking three major titles.

His victory at the 2000 US Open was particularly memorable, as he finished 15 strokes ahead of his closest rivals at Pebble Beach.

Speaking about those years in an earlier interview, Harmon recalled that Woods was never satisfied with winning and always wanted to improve his performances.

The two eventually ended their coaching relationship in 2004, and Tiger went on to work with Hank Haney.

Harmon also coached other famous golfers, including Phil Mickelson, Dustin Johnson, Rickie Fowler and Adam Scott.

The American has helped four different players reach world No. 1 during his coaching career, with Johnson and Scott joining Woods and Norman on that list.

Although Woods and Norman achieved different things during their careers, Harmon continues to remember the amount of work both players were prepared to do to remain among the best golfers in the world.