ShareThisSo, how much golf have you watched these past eight months? The British Open, perhaps? The last couple of rounds of the PGA Championship? Maybe a few hours of the Ryder Cup? The game just hasn't been the same without the world's best player -- hasn't been as interesting, hasn't been as compelling, hasn't been nearly as much fun.
That's not just my opinion.
Check the numbers.
Since Tiger Woods went out with a busted knee, ticket sales waned and the all-important TV ratings plummeted.
The reason? Without Woods on the marquee, golf just didn't seem to matter much, other than to the game's most devoted fans. Certainly, it lost much of its mass appeal.
The likeable Padraig Harrington won back-to-back major championships last summer, followed by the U.S. Ryder Cup team's first victory over the Europeans since 1999. And, really, only the golf world seemed to care, or even notice.
There was none of the buzz that would've been generated if Woods had won those majors or led the Americans to Ryder Cup glory.
Truth be told, some skeptics unfairly place an unofficial asterisk next to Harrington's deserved triumphs at last year's British Open and PGA Championship, merely because Woods wasn't in the field.
Yes, Woods is that big, one of the few multi-millionaire athletes worth more than he's paid.
Yes, Woods means that much to the game -- a troubling reality that should worry the folks who run the PGA Tour, which, for the past decade, has been unable to produce any real rival for him.
But now, at least, he's back.
Back from reconstructive knee surgery. Back on the course. Back to resume the most remarkable career in the game's storied history.
And, just like that, golf matters again. Indeed, Woods' return to the Tour at the Accenture Match Play Championship, which tees off Wednesday in the Arizona desert, should produce some of the loudest headlines of the week, especially if he gets to the weekend.
"That's my intent, to go in there and win," he said last week, after announcing his comeback plan. "Nothing ever changes."
Not when it comes to winning.
Woods has a new ACL, new infant son, new sponsor, new home being built on Jupiter Island. Fla. and a new swing designed to put less stress on that rebuilt left knee.
He has played one Tour event since The Masters, 10 months ago.
But when he hits his first meaningful drive since June -- the Golf Channel plans to televise every shot he hits in his first two rounds -- he'll bring with him the same indomitable spirit that drove him to a dramatic, U.S. Open victory at Torrey Pines, where he played 91 holes on one good leg.
"Getting out there and competing again, feeling the adrenaline and feeling the rush of competing and playing again . . . I haven't done that in awhile," Woods said, adding that he's "looking forward to getting back and experiencing all of that again."
He admitted he'll be nervous, saying Tuesday, "The day I'm not nervous is the day I quit." He said earlier he's curious to see "whether or not my game is sharp."
But make no mistake: Woods isn't using this tournament to test his leg. He has already done that.
Woods, now 33, is in his golfing prime and chasing history. He has won 65 Tour titles, leaving him 17 shy of Sam Snead's all-time record. He has won 14 majors, four less than Jack Nicklaus.
He never just shows up.
He's too proud, too professional.
Woods always gives you his best effort, even when his game is wobbling. He wouldn't play if he didn't believe he could win.
This week is no different.
"To have it feel this healthy and this solid and secure," Woods said, "Man, it's a great feeling."
For all of us.
He's the No. 1 seed in the 64-player field, still the No. 1 player in the world, still the fiercest competitor in the game.
He's still Tiger Woods. And golf doesn't get any better than that.
That's not just my opinion.
Check the numbers.
(Ray McNulty is sports columnist for Scripps Treasure Coast (Fla.) Newspapers, The Stuart News, Fort Pierce Tribune and Vero Beach Press Journal. Contact him at ray.mcnulty@scripps.com or on the Web at www.tcpalm.com.)
column
