5 Reasons Golf Would Thrive on Young Guns vs. Tiger Woods

Based on Tiger Woods' play so far in 2015, this isn't going to be a career year for the 39-year-old. In two starts, Woods missed the cut badly (at the Waste Management Phoenix Open) and withdrew due to injury (at the Farmers Insurance Open). 

And while some of his detractors may welcome the former world No. 1's decline, his departure from center stage looks like it'll have an adverse effect on event viewership and tournament attendance. 

A "Tiger Woods vs. the young guns" climate would be vastly better for the game. Why? Click through to find out. 

1. More Variety Than an Era of Solo Domination

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Do you remember what was happening on the PGA Tour 15 years ago? 

The early 2000s were mostly Woods with a season of Phil Mickelson and Vijay Singh. From 1998 through 2003, Woods won 32 times, including seven majors. 

Do you remember the "big five": Tiger Woods, Ernie Els, Phil Mickelson, Vijay Singh, Retief Goosen? While few great duels came from that grouping, we could be in store for something better.  

Something like the above featuring Woods (and perhaps Mickelson too) and Rickie Fowler, Billy Horschel, Rory McIlroy, Jordan Spieth, Patrick Reed, etc. 

That would be compelling golf. 

2. Tiger Woods Would Be Regarded as More Than a Pathetic Figure

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It's difficult for those of us who watched Tiger Woods win the 1997 Masters in triumphant fashion and dominate professional golf for the succeeding 10 years to believe how the once-mighty Woods has fallen. 

From the infidelity scandal of 2010 through the injury-plagued seasons that followed, the formerly dominant Woods has taken on the look of a pathetic, desperate man. And with the exception of a five-win season in 2013, Woods has been either hurt or struggling with his golf game (or both) for most of the period of time.

A return to form for Woods would mean less talk about "deactivated glutes" and "dislodged sacrums" and more talk about wins and quality golf.  

That wouldn't be a bad thing for fans of the game, would it?   

3. Excitement!

Remember how exciting the final round of last year's PGA Championship was? The race to finish after the storm? The back-nine showdown? Rory? Rickie? Phil? Henrik?

Imagine if the guy in the video above would have been in the mix, rather than nursing his back at home following a missed cut. 

How exciting would that have been? 

4. The Best Way to Pass the Torch

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There would be a nice symmetry to Woods, who for so long was without a serious rival, battling with several young guns over the final decade of his PGA Tour career. Woods could reach the 19-major mark and then bow out, surrendering the stage to younger actors. 

The above would have to be better for golf fans than Woods' current pattern: get hurt, come back, play poorly, repeat. 

It would be the ideal way for El Tigre to pass the torch and ensure his legacy isn't one of early brilliance followed by late-career injury and disappointment. 

5. The Best Way to Maximize Interest in the Game

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Ultimately, the main reason golf would thrive in a Tiger vs. the whippersnappers scenario is this: We've already seen the staggering magnitude of Tigermania. In the last year in general, and at the PGA Championship in particular, we've seen how a combination of McIlroy plus other young stars can nearly draw as many viewers as a Woodsian romp. 

Check out this morsel, published on Zap2It:

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An estimated 30.9 million viewers (Persons 2+) watched all-or-part* of CBS Sports’ two-day coverage of the 2014 PGA Championship according to Nielsen Media Research, up 30% from last year’s 23.8 million; and up 42% from 21.8 million in 2012 when Rory McIlroy won his first PGA Championship.  The 30.9 million was the highest number of viewers to watch all-or-part of the Network’s weekend coverage in five years (2009; 35.7 million.

"

Those numbers, plus a Woods bump, would lead to the largest golf viewership figures...ever.