Tiger's limp might be a permanent addition to his game

SAN DIEGO -- Wincing, grimacing, cursing under his breath at the nagging pain and using his putter as a walking stick, Tiger Woods found a way to grind out another trademark birdie on the final hole of regulation Sunday night at the U.S. Open to force an 18-hole playoff.

Tiger is in pain during most of his round Sunday. (Getty Images)

It was memorable stuff from an increasingly unforgettable event. Some of the most enduring images from a week perched atop the panoramic cliffs overlooking the Pacific Ocean will be of Woods biting his lip, gamely soldiering on despite having a leaky game and being creaky lame, stoically managing to muster through.

That is, unless the view becomes familiar.

Woods will face veteran Rocco Mediate on Monday morning with the Open title on the line, but whether his left wheel can hold enough air to make it another lap around Torrey Pines Golf Course is another question altogether.

It's an infinitely more crucial query than whether he wins, actually, because based on what the world's most famous athlete is and isn't saying when pressed for his long-term prognosis, playing with scorching pain in his left knee for the rest of his career might be a distinct possibility.

Based on actual and anecdotal information gleaned this week, it's becoming more apparent with each step in his gimpy gait that the Woods on display at the 108th incarnation of the national championship might be the form we see for years to come, which is a daunting thought for any fan of the sport.

Ask anybody who makes a living with a scalpel and surgical mask about the significance of having three surgeries on the same knee and the answers will be fairly comparable. Only Woods and his surgeon know precisely what the angry, affected area looks like, but when a patient has had cartilage and a benign tumor removed from the same knee, that's enough to make anybody walk funny.

Perhaps, even, forever.

His doctor's advice?

"Don't play golf," Woods said after the round.

For all of us, that could be awful news.

Woods said he took painkillers midway through the round to ease searing pain that was so severe, he doubled over after hitting his tee shot on the second hole, his hands on his thighs. Woods is the same guy who hates to take allergy medications because he believes it might affect his clarity of thinking, so it runs counter to his every instinct.

Understand that Woods is perhaps the most stubborn athlete currently competing in any arena or stage. Admitting to diminished capacity runs anathema to his very DNA, because it might leave a drop of blood in the PGA Tour shark sign, interpreted as a chink in the armor, or make him seem more vulnerable.