Tiger Woods' bad back could be our good fortune.

6 Days Ago

2 Weeks Ago

Woods announced Friday that he won't play the next two tournaments so his back — out of whack with spasms — can heal.

Now pull out the calendar and do some simple math.

He is going to skip the next two tournaments. He isn't qualified to play the week after that. So that means the next possible place he could play is …

Right here in Tampa Bay.

If Woods still has his eyes on playing the Masters, you would think he would want as much tournament play as he can get. And, if he can rest his back into shape, the next time he might tee it up is March 9-12 at the Valspar Championship at Innisbrook.

Great, right?

Well, maybe not.

Even if he makes his return to the PGA at Innisbrook, what kind of Woods would we be getting?

His back is a mess and, because of that, his game is a mess.

He missed the cut two weeks ago by four strokes. Last week in Dubai, he shot an opening-round 77, then withdrew because of the back issues that have dogged him for years. He had multiple surgeries in 2015 and sat out 16 months before returning in January.

But is he back to where he started again? Is his body simply broken for good after all the years of violent swings, rigorous workout routines and constant tinkering of his game? Will he ever be able to get his body right?

Is Woods gone for good?

He hasn't won a tournament since 2013. He hasn't won a major since 2008. And nothing he does — rest, surgeries, more rest — seems to work. And he's at an age now — 41 — where even healthy golfers are on the, excuse the pun, the back nine of their careers.

Forget this question: Will Tiger ever be Tiger again?

No one will ever be Woods again. What he did from 2000-08 is the stuff of legend. He intimidated and dominated golf. He won 12 majors and put his name up there with Nicklaus, Snead, Hogan and Jones as the greatest golfer who ever lived.

We can't shake our heads and say, "Tiger will never be Tiger again" because it's unlikely anyone will ever be that good again. He's a once-in-a-generation player.

But can he just win again?

Can he win a major? Can he win a tournament of any kind?

Sadly, that feels less and less likely as time goes by.

That's too bad for golf because golf misses him.

As excited as we try to get about Rory and Phil and Spieth, it just isn't like the old days when Woods was on the prowl. Those guys are good players. Real good.

But they're not Woods.

Love him or hate him, Woods made Sundays great. There was nothing better than flipping on the television on Sunday and seeing Woods' red shirt and his name among the leaders. Didn't matter if it was a major or some outpost on the PGA Tour. But it was better when it was at Augusta or St. Andrews or Pebble Beach.

Now it feels like it will never happen again.

The only way it will is if he finally gets healthy, if that's even possible at this point.

That's why it pains me to say what I'm about to say because I've been the Official Tiger Tracker — looking for any tale-tell sign that Tiger might play at Innisbrook and begging him to do so. But maybe it's best if, once again, he shuts it down for a while. Not weeks. A long while. Maybe it's best if he errs on the side of caution, even if that means removing this year's Masters from his wish list.

That also would mean not rushing back to play at Innisbrook and setting his sights on a return date based on good health rather than a specific date on a calendar.

If he can get back for Innisbrook, that would be great. But only if he's healthy. Better to see him 100 percent on TV in August than 50 percent, limping around the course and missing the cut next month in person at Innisbrook.

For a moment Friday, it was exciting to think that Woods' latest news meant he might play at the Valspar. But then reality quickly set in and you realize that Friday was a really bad day for Woods.

And a really bad day for golf.

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