This is not a "What's wrong with Tiger Woods?" column. I promise. It seems like the entire golfing media has become consumed with watching Tiger Woods' continued struggles from a distance and furiously scribbling down their bon mots on a story that can honestly be explained in three words: HE'S GETTING DIVORCED (seriously, what other dominant athlete has gone through a similar experience while in his or her prime?). The Jason Gays and Gene Wojciechowskis of the world can debate whether Tiger will ever return to form. I'll save my words—and concern—for what will happen to the golfing world if the sport's prime mover is really done. Because like any individual sport, golf needs an alpha dog. Consider the history of each sport defined by "every man for himself." The boom periods of almost every individual sport have come when one athlete stood above the rest and came to transcend the game by dominating it. Boxing was never as popular as when Mohammed Ali floated like a butterfly, stung like a bee, and made the heavyweight division his own. Track and field had its most recent heyday when Carl Lewis and Florence Griffith Joyner were smashing records and racking up gold medals. And would extreme sports be where they are today without the breathtaking skateboarding performances of Tony Hawk in the late 1990s? Read more: http://www.theatlantic.com/culture/archive/2010/08/can-phil-mickelson-keep-golf-alive/61359/
