When Tiger returns is anyone’s best guess

By A.j. Reed
Western Herald

As with any report that comes out revolving around Tiger Woods, there are often multiple versions and multiple sources.

The latest report surrounding Woods is the question as to when he will return to golf.

The Associated Press has reported that Woods will not return to golf before the Masters.  The New York Post has reported that he will be back for the Arnold Palmer Invitational, which scheduled to start March 25.

In order to sort through this mess, let’s first try to look at some of the facts.

The last time Woods played in a professional golf tournament was Nov. 15 at the Australian Masters, which he won.  It has been close to four months since then.

According to ESPN.com, the longest break Tiger has ever had before a major was nine weeks.  This was following the death of his father in 2006 and was also the first time he had ever missed the cut for a major.

The death of a father is a life altering event, something that effected Woods in a monumental way due their extreme closeness.

Woods’s infidelity has created a much greater media storm than his father’s death did and it has probably had just as great an impact on who Woods is as a person.

For Woods to come back for the Masters would be an extreme mistake.  The pressure that is going to be on him to perform is going to be even higher than what it usually is.  When he does finally return, the main thought on everyone’s mind will be “does he still have it?”

The Masters will have the one of the toughest fields of the year.  The chances of Woods being able to make the cut after taking over a four month break from golf and competing against the toughest players in golf is slim to none.

In my opinion, he has two options.

His first option is two compete in the Arnold Palmer Invitational before the Masters.  Woods has won the tournament a total of six times, the latest being in 2008 and 2009.  It’s safe to say that he feels comfortable with this course.

The Arnold Palmer would be a great way for him to get used to playing in front of a crowd again that won’t be the size that you see at the Masters every year, where fans are sure to be following his every move.

His other is option is to simply wait until after the Masters.  This would give himself more time to prepare and get himself ready for competitive golf again.

Ultimately, the choice rests with Woods.  If he feels that he can start his comeback at the Masters, then that is what he should do.

I just hope that he remembers that fans and the media will be putting a lot of weight on how he performs and to see if he still can be the number one golfer in the world after what has happened in the last four months.

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Posted by heraldstaff on Mar 14 2010. Filed under Sports. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry

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