2010 British Open: Where Does Tiger Woods Go From Here?

Another golf major in 2010 without a healthy Tiger Woods hoisting the trophy.

In one sense, it's far too early to say the post-crash Tiger Woods is finished, but it's clear he's not his old self.

The "slump" of 2003-2004 always seemed to have some kind of "hard" factor you could put your finger on, be it his swing changes to accommodate his knee, a bad day on the putting greens, etc.

This slump is baffling because while it's true he's had bad putting days, he seems unable to make the kind of weekend charges he'd become famous for over the years.

Woods was in contention at The Masters and the U.S. Open, but he never really seemed to be a real threat to the leaders.

This weekend he wasn't even a threat to second place even after opening the tournament with a 67, and then shooting a "good" 73 in harsh conditions. The "old" Tiger simply never showed up this weekend, and a new Nike putter most likely is the least of his problems right now.

The hard truth Tiger Woods may need to face is he needs to regain his killer instinct. That's what appears to be lacking in his 2010 game.

The old Tiger Woods would've destroyed the competition at Augusta National and Pebble Beach. Tiger OWNED those courses when his game was firing on all cylinders and it was futile to try and stop him.

Yet it now seems even if Tiger's game is playing out well, as it was at the beginning of the week at St. Andrews, it doesn't hang around for an entire tournament in 2010.

Woods has parted ways with Hank Haney, and the search for a consistent swing continues. Maybe what he needs is a putting coach.

"You just can't play and expect to win golf tournaments if you have nine or 10 three-putts for a week," said Woods after his round on Sunday. "No one can win doing that. Got to clean that up before I tee it up again.''

As most of us are sure his rehab counselor told him earlier this year, the first step in overcoming a problem is admitting you have it.