Tiger Woods still seeking swing help

— -- The surprise isn't so much that Tiger Woods is seeking the help of a relatively unknown swing instructor named Chris Como. It is more that he is seeking one at all.

All golfers look for ideas in some fashion, whether it is a quick look by a peer on the driving range or a more formal arrangement, such as the high-profile ones Woods has had in his career with the likes of Butch Harmon, Hank Haney and Sean Foley.

But through all this time, after some 18 years as a pro, the ups and downs associated with winning majors, and all that accumulated knowledge, you'd think Woods might want to go at this alone for a bit.

He's had time to clear his mind and regain his health after shutting it down following a missed cut at the PGA Championship. There is no pressure to perform, at least in the short term, as he is set to get back to competition in less than two weeks at the Hero World Challenge. A return to natural thoughts, swinging freely and without the burden of mechanics might do him some good.

As Haney said at the time of Woods' parting with Foley: "I think taking ownership would be the best approach.

"He's a hard student, and that's not a negative. You would expect him to be. He's Tiger Woods. A 36-handicapper listens. You don't expect arguably the greatest player ever to just say tell me what to do. He'll listen to himself the best."

Apparently Woods prefers to have another set of eyes and ears. Save for brief periods in his career, it is the way he has done it going back to his amateur days, when he first brought Harmon on board at age 16.

But don't expect a return to the Harmon swing. That was unlikely for numerous reasons, among them the fact that Woods moved away from it years ago due to what was believed to be pressure on his left knee. Woods was never going back to Harmon, nor his swing.

Como's background is in biomechanics, and that is more in line with what Foley was doing as opposed to anything Harmon did or does. And there is an added bit of intrigue regarding Como: According to Golf Digest, he is finishing a master's degree at Texas Woman's University under Dr. Young-Hoo Kwon.

Kwon is considered an expert in biomechanics and "sport injury mechanism," -- or how sports movements impact the body. He has developed his own three-dimensional swing analysis to show instructors what their students' bodies are doing.

Given that Woods had microdiscectomy surgery in March to alleviate a pinched nerve in his back, another back issue in August and four knee procedures, you can see where this might be going.

Figuring out how best to make a golf swing work and prevent injury would seemingly be an important step for a man about to turn 39 who has endured numerous injury setbacks.

In that regard, perhaps all of this will be a good thing for Woods, whose overall health and ability to perform heading into 2015 are still very much in doubt.

But if it presents the kind of paralysis by analysis that seemingly has plagued him at times over the past few years, then Woods is unlikely to return even to the form that saw him win eight times in 2012-13.

Although Woods played just eight times worldwide this year, he seemingly couldn't find a fairway when he did. Whether you attribute that to injury or technique, something wasn't working, and it made sense to start anew after getting healthy.

That time is apparently now, and Woods didn't waste any time in not only working with Como but announcing him as his "consultant."

As part of his Twitter announcement, Woods also said he is "excited to be back competing," which might be the buried news in all of this.

Ultimately, that will be an important factor as Woods gets on with the business of putting his swing back together.