CBSSports.com senior writer Steve Elling and columnist and golf writer Ron Green Jr. of the Charlotte Observer take a range-finder reading on the global game heading into the PGA Tour's season finale and other worldly events over the next fortnight. Feel free to consult an atlas.
| 1. Is it possible Tiger Woods is actually ... human? He has seemingly gagged away more tournaments this year than he has in years. Has he lost some of his aura? | |
| Steve Elling | Ron Green Jr. |
 If getting beaten in eye-to-eye fashion at the PGA Championship didn't take away some of the fear factor, then Sunday's disaster in China did. Woods dunked a ball in the water, missed a couple of key birdie putts and played the same way he did in the final group at the PGA and Players Championship, when he was either holding the lead or within arm's reach. He has won one of the past four tournaments globally in which he played in the final group, winning only the BMW Championship in that span, when he entered the final round with a seven-stroke margin. Without a doubt, he's been more consistent over the past three years than at any point in his earlier career, when he seemingly either won or was well out of the mix, so being close to the lead so often will statistically result in more misfires based on sheer volume. But he's not winning by blowout totals as often, either. On the plus side, Woods came from three or more strokes behind in three other tournaments to win on Sunday, which had not been his pattern over the previous few years, either. What does it all mean? His putter has been annoyingly inconsistent all year, which might or might not be a sign of things to come. In a perverse way, Woods' mortality makes the game more interesting. Occasional doses of parity don't seem to hurt the NFL much. |  The fact that the question has been raised means, at the very least, there has been a shift in the landscape. Does it mean you couldn't tell Tiger Woods from Nick Watney on Sunday if it weren't for his red shirt? Not quite. He's still Tiger, and he's still the starting point in any discussion about the best in the business. It was startling to see Tiger play as raggedly as he did in the final round in China because we're so accustomed to seeing him dazzle us. Has it become a pattern? No. Because Tiger is there so often on Sundays, he's going to have days when he's not sharp. What seems to have changed is when he brings something less than his A game, he's not winning. Players have seen him so much and played against him so regularly now, maybe the intimidation factor has lessened a little bit. But when I asked Chris DiMarco and Zach Johnson recently if they bought into the idea some have floated that perhaps Tiger wouldn't break Jack Nicklaus' record of 18 major championships, they both dismissed it immediately. They made it clear they expect Tiger to continue to be Tiger for the foreseeable future. |
| 2. Phil Mickelson has become born again at age 39. At the moment, isn't he the best player on the terra firma? | |
| Steve Elling | Ron Green Jr. |
| No question, after a long lull at midseason, when his family was facing well-chronicled medical crises, he has turned hotter than Sriracha chili sauce, culminating in his victory in China on Sunday. He won the Tour Championship, was the best player at the Presidents Cup (4-0-1 record while teamed with three different partners) and claimed the HSBC Champions by holding off two guys who have been ranked No. 1 in the world in Ernie Els and Woods. At one point last week, a revitalized Mickelson was overheard talking about his putter, "Someone's got his putter back," which is vintage, brash Lefty. Mickelson says poor putting had hidden the improvements he has made elsewhere in his game and now that the ball's rolling straight and true as most of his shots, he's repeatedly giving Woods all he can handle. Head to head, Lefty has beaten Woods five times in their past seven pairings, an amazing reversal of fortune over Phil's earlier career. Pity that Mickelson is not going to play for the next 10 weeks. As with actual food from China, I was hungry for more two hours after the HSBC ended. | The only thing wrong with Mickelson's game right now is his timing. Imagine if he were on a roll like this heading into the Masters or the U.S. Open. When he has been on, Mickelson has always been more capable than any player of matching Tiger. The problem has been the ups and downs. With his family situation seemingly better now, Mickelson seemed like a new man at the end of the PGA Tour season after Dave Stockton had polished the rust off his putting stroke. The difference between hoping putts will fall and expecting them to go in is enormous and it shows in Mickelson's bearing. That's why the crack about getting his putter back was classic Mickelson, and he has reason to be brimming with confidence. Dave Pelz (who's still working with Mickelson, by the way) said he expects 2010 to be a big year for Mickelson because of the work he has put in with Butch Harmon and his rediscovered putting stroke. If Mickelson can keep what he has now through the holidays and into early next year, we have plenty to look forward to. |
| 3. Unpredictable American talent Anthony Kim says he is skipping the Race to Dubai finale in two weeks because he spread himself too thin this year. Is that the right call? | |
| Steve Elling | Ron Green Jr. |
| No less than three times over the season, I asked Kim if he regretted his whirlwind early schedule, which included multiple offshore appearances on other tours, and whether it contributed to his disappointing year. He repeatedly insisted there was no correlation. Until last week in China, anyway. "You know, I think it's easy to get lost in it and just chasing money around, and that's not really what I want to do," he said. "It hurt my golf game physically, and my body obviously wasn't rested, and I think that cost me this year." He made 26 starts globally in 2009, contending in the States only once since January. Kim might be young, hardheaded and half-clueless about the rigors of travel, but there are thousands of wiser heads out there thinking, "We told you so." To a similar degree, fellow 20-something Camilo Villegas -- who also won twice last year -- followed the same Race to Dubai path unto temptation and also has been shut out of victories 2009. Villegas has played 25 times and is set to tee it up in Dubai Nov. 19. They'll learn. Perhaps the hard way. It's hard to serve two masters when tours are separated by the Atlantic or Pacific oceans. | It's not like Kim and Villegas are the first players to take advantage of their new fame and cash in on the opportunities that came with winning. And it's no surprise that, like most players, they wound up with more money than trophies or satisfaction. Players can hear the warnings about the dangers of going global, but it doesn't stop them. They always want to believe they're going to be the exception. In Kim's case, he never seemed settled this year. He was hurt early, never developed any momentum, and before long, the season had gotten away from him. Maybe Kim's decision to part with caddie Eric Larson was a way to start fresh next year. He's such a great talent, and his personality draws the galleries to him. His enthusiasm was contagious at the 2008 Ryder Cup. Kim's decision to skip the Race to Dubai is probably the right call. He needs to step back, let this season settle behind him and be ready for next year. |
