By
Francisco Merced
Arizona Daily Wildcat
Who's the playa that drives the woods like no other golfer could?
Woods.
You see this Tiger is a bad mother... Shut yo' mouth. I'm just talking about Tiger. We can dig it.
Hold on, let me refer back to my Korean calendar and check, hmmm. Yes, this indeed is the year of the Tiger.
Now the hype around Tiger is astounding,- it's the reason I'm writing - but how dynamic is his impact on golf and society? Let's examine.
1. He's expected to be the first billion-dollar athlete.
2. He's expected to surpass Michael Jordan as the most popular athlete in the world.
3. He's expected to make golf a backyard sport.
Because of Tiger Woods, I have decided to head to the driving range on the weekends. Because of Tiger Woods, I have decided to wear red shirts on Sunday. Because of Tiger Woods, I have decided to watch golf.
But is Tiger doing a favor for golf?
He is becoming rapidly known for his romping defeats - one wonders whether other golfers are even in the same field when he plays.
Granted, TV ratings are higher then they've ever been, but how do the other pros feel?
Do they realistically have a legitimate chance to win? If Tiger's not playing, yes. If he is, then someone better light a prayer candle.
In the last grand slam of the year, the PGA Championship, poor Bob May tried to overcome the Tiger tidalwave. Poor Bob May lost.
During this year's US Open, Tiger won by 15 strokes and he was the only one to score under par.
In the British Open, he won by only eight strokes and he didn't finish in the top three at the Masters, so maybe, just maybe, there's hope.
But when Tiger says, "I'm playing better than last year and hopefully, I'll be better this year," it scares me. Just image what other pro golfers must feel to hear such language.
What does this do for the game of golf when players try and try again to defeat this "Godzilla of Golf" and end up like the toy Tonka tanks in the movies?
Woods is the youngest player to win the grand slam of golf and, just Sunday, he completed a four round score of 21-under par.
For the rest of the golf world, there's only the hope of finding that silver lining.
Every now and then Tiger will have an "off" day. He may even decide to bring his "B" game, and for these precious few moments, the Phil Mickelson's of the world must take advantage of these opportunities.
All this just goes to show one thing - that Tiger's good. Actually he's really good. In fact, it makes me realize one thing: I'm Tiger Woods.
