Quick Roundup: Tiger's Pre-Masters Back Surgery
/The most interesting quote I read from various stories came from Notah Begay, who is as close as anyone can be to Tiger Woods and who has obviously discussed the back issues with his Stanford bud. And from Begay's remarks, it's clear this decision came after a lot more research and discussion than today's abrupt announcement may have led us to believe.
From Michael Rosenberg at golf.com:
“This pain has been going on for quite some time. It hasn’t just happened in the last few weeks. There has been a research process, interviews, a lot of different people doing this. If this doesn’t get cleared up, it is certainly something that can hamper performance. I think that is what he is starting to realize.”
Dave Kindred sums up why the first non-Tiger Masters is a bummer for fans:
I say the Masters will be the lesser for Woods' absence, and it will be, because Woods, more than any player since Arnold Palmer, has created a fan base of people who'd otherwise have no interest in golf. What Palmer did with charisma, Woods did with virtuosity.
Jason Sobel shared a fairly common optimism at the news which I heard on a lot of Golf Channel's live coverage of the news, just wish I could share the positive feeling about this news considering what others who've had the procedure say.
This is not the end of the line. It’s too shortsighted to believe that Woods won’t recover from this injury as he has in the past. It’s too careless to think he won’t return as the game’s best player once again.
That’s probably not the popular opinion right now. You might think he’s done. You might think the chase to catch Jack is over. You might think he’s doomed – if such a term is the proper description – to be the second-leading major winner ever.
The most riveting subplot in sports will only become more intriguing when he returns.
The problem is, he may be returning after missing all or part of a prime year of major venues for his game.
Bob Harig also sees the positive in this news because of the long term prognosis.
But if Woods, 38, can put aside the short-term disappointment, getting to the bottom of his back issues, getting it fixed, and moving forward can actually be a good thing for the 14-time major champion.
That is not to say he'll come back ready to win at Pinehurst or Royal Liverpool or Valhalla. Or that he'll even be ready for the Ryder Cup.
And yet it offers the hope that his back pain, which has bothered him in some form since last year's PGA Championship, can be alleviated and he can get back to the business of playing golf at a high level.
