Tiger Woods on the Mend; PGA Feels the Pain

There's no Tiger to root for, there's no Tiger to root against when you cheer on an underdog, there's no Tiger for your other favorite PGA player to beat, there's no Tiger to provide final 18 hole drama when all the other notables have fallen by the wayside on a tough course or a bad day. Where have all those Tigers gone? One man, one athlete has an injury and the face of an entire professional sport has changed. The weekly grind of the PGA tour is different; is Tiger playing this week?

As far as the remaining majors are concerned the British Open will still provide the same excitement as always with a diverse field of great players from around the world including the Europeans that have the American players cornered as far as team play golf is concerned. That fact guarantees the Ryder Cup will be a great event to watch as well, even without Tiger playing. But the PGA championship definitely won't be the same without him. Contemporary players test themselves against two things these days, the course and Tiger Woods. The Hills will be there to at Oakland to challenge the best of the PGA but not the Woods.

Tiger's absence will be a matter of diminished challenge for the PGA Championship but what impact will his convalescence have on the Fedex Cup in only its second year? Tiger set a precedent last year by laying off for one of the Cup's playoff events so the other top contenders had to follow suit, with the exception of Steve Stricker. Woods dominated the Fedex standings all year and then he won handily in the final playoff event where you had to break out the slide rules to figure out the chances of another contender winning. But in a yearlong event with an overly generous prize structure that is shallow in prestige and heavy in dollar signs and sponsor hype, Tiger's absence has to hurt.

Sergio Garcia had expressed tongue in cheek gratitude for Tiger's absence during his win at the Player's Championship this year. But I think Sergio as well as all the other top players in the PGA can't wait for Tiger's return, so that when they hoist the trophy for whatever tournament they might win, they'll know that they really did beat the best in winning it.