JOIN US FOR TODAY'S EPISODE OF "AS THE TIGER TURNS"

By Doug McAllister

It's like the Energizer Bunny — it just keeps going and going and going and going...
What am I talking about? The melodramatic, almost soap opera-esque commentary on everything Tiger Woods does or doesn't do with his golf game these days. Getting tired of it? Amen! I am too.

Today on the Golf Channel web site it was the nonsensical delving into Tiger's putting woes at St. Andrews. "Is his confidence gone? Putter changes signal loss of confidence!" Really? I couldn't tell Tiger was lacking confidence and, assuredly, the putter is the culprit! Thanks, so much for making that one clear. Please! It doesn't take a rocket scientist to see that Tiger has confidence problems these days. So why talk about it? Because if the USS Tiger sinks the whole game of golf sinks with him! Right?

Wrong!

Sorry to put on the broken record again, but — for the umpteenth time — TIGER WOODS IS NOT GOLF!! How many times does it have to be said? The game of golf is bigger than any one player and will continue to be long after Eldrick takes up the rocking chair.

So why not spend time singing the praises of newly-crowned Open Champion Louis Oosthuizen or of US Open Champion Graeme McDowell? They surely represent the next chapters of the game — especially in the case of the former. Quite simply, we don't care about the new South African sensation because he doesn't sell newspapers or, in this case, he doesn't attract blog readers. Instead, AS THE TIGER TURNS makes for much more interesting — or, perhaps, provocative — reading.

Humans love disasters far more than they love victories and — unfortunately for those of us who just want to continue to play the game — Tiger will continue to offer all of the melodrama necessary.

So, when you tee it up today, wipe those Tiger-induced tears from your eyes, and...

Hit 'em long and straight!