Editor Faceoff

Anthony Dorunda- Time and space are needed for Tiger to lick his wounds

Alright, he’s apologized, it is now time to begin the countdown to Tiger’s return to golf. After  leaving us without a return date, it is quite possible that golf’s biggest star will not be in attendance when golf’s Superbowl, the Master’s, gets under way in April.

So now the question is, should Tiger come back? The answer? No, not right now.

The best thing he can do is stay away from the limelight for a while and tie up the loose ends in his personal life. That’s what’s most important in the very end. Golf is just a game – a hobby that will be waiting for him when he decides to return. His life outside of golf is what matters when it all boils down.

He has to focus on number one--himself--and organize the most important part of his life--his family.

I completely agree, as does the rest of the world, that golf needs Tiger. But when they say golf needs Tiger, it’s not the actual game that needs Woods, it the businessmen and power brokers behind the scenes that need Woods. The figureheads talking are discussing golf monetarily; they’re talking about the Benjamin’s.
With Tiger playing in a tournament, the following is incredible; without him, sometimes we forget that golf is still being played. Just look at the numbers.

According to Nielsen Company, an estimated average of 4.6 million viewers tuned in to tournaments played by Tiger in 2007-08. When he had knee surgery after winning the 2008 U.S. Open and missed the rest of the season, ratings sunk as much as 50 percent.

Neal Pilson, president of Pilson Communications, a media consulting firm, and a former president of CBS Sports said that “if Tiger’s in an event, you expect a 50 percent increase in ratings.”

For the 15 or so tournaments where Woods might have been expected to play this year, Larry Novenstern, executive vice president of Optimedia, estimated the resulting advertising loss to networks would total between $10 million and $20 million.
 

But look at it this way. Tiger has only been on the PGA tour since 1997; they survived before Tiger didn’t they? And one day they will have to do it again, so consider this a round robin tournament in which they get to figure out what they have to do to keep people interested, while maintaining ratings and public interest.
 

It also gives other golfers a chance to step up and prove their worth without the enormous shadow cast by Tiger.

Am I saying Tiger should never come back? No way, Jose.  That’s like saying I shouldn’t have turkey and pumpkin pie on Thanksgiving. I’m just saying he needs to take a break to get everything else in his life sorted out and to take some time off from the sport that demands perfection from him every time he hits the fairway. He needs to re-charge his batteries, and come out when he has a renewed vigor, and a hunger to get back to the sport he loves--and the sport that loves him.

Daniel Kautz- Tiger needs to stop hiding in the Woods

Tiger Woods set the record for consecutive covers of the New York Daily Post with 20, beating the previous record of 19 set by the 9/11 World Trade Center attacks. Despite his grossly over-publicized infidelities, Woods should return to the sport of golf sooner, rather than later.  He is without peer, the true giant of his sport.  Every time the experts raise an argument claiming that he has been overtaken by one of his rivals (Mickelson, Els, Singh, etc.) he proves them wrong.  He draws the biggest crowds, the biggest advertisers, and is sorely needed by a sport that is lacking in legitimate star power.

The obstacles he will face on the green may be startling. Over the last several months, his life has been analyzed and talked about more than the cast of Jersey Shore, with talking heads all around the country offering up their opinions on his conduct.  His marriage has been talked about and lampooned relentlessly, from talk shows to Saturday Night Live and beyond. No one knows what kind of crowd reaction he will receive after stepping under the rope for the first time, though his caddie, Steve Williams, offered a hopeful assessment.

“I think when Tiger gets back to playing, people will be appreciative of the fact he is going to play…” said Williams in a story published on ESPN.com.  “There are always going to be people who are going to knock you ... Being the No. 1 player in the world and being as successful as Tiger has been, there have been people who have knocked him anyway. I am sure there might be a few more, it goes with the territory.”

A few more?  That would be a minor miracle.  What Tiger should be preparing for are boo birds, and plenty of them.

Should that stop him from returning though?  I agree with Mr. Dorunda that his number one priority at the moment should be trying to heal the damage done to his family.  The damage to his marriage may be irreparable, but he still has to try and arrange the care of his children.  I believe that he will come back sooner than most anticipate, however, because of the type of competitor he is.  He and the rest of the world already know that he is the greatest golfer alive; he now needs to prove that he is the greatest in history.  With every tournament he misses, he loses an opportunity to further cement his legacy as the sport’s best ever.

Tiger’s already offered a public apology for his behavior, beginning the long road towards mending the relationship between him and fans of golf around the world.  By the time the Master’s roll around in April, he will have had adequate time out of the public spotlight with which to heal and mentally prepare for his competition.  When you consider the implications his break may have on his career, as well as the financial ramifications his time off has had on the PGA, it becomes obvious that Tiger Woods need to return to his sport as soon as possible.  They need each other, for better or worse.