2014 has not been Tiger Woods’ year. First he missed last week’s Masters tournament following surgery to repair a pinched nerve in his back, and now his good friend Notah Begay is telling everyone that Tiger most likely will be skipping the U.S. Open at Pinehurst this coming June.
“I’ve been in contact with him this week. He missed being at Augusta and certainly was watching the tournament, (but) I think he needs to give (his back) a minimum of 90 days to make sure that scar tissue heals up appropriately and he doesn’t run the risk of re-injuring it. So that would push him past the U.S. Open.”
If true—and chances are it is seeing that Begay and Tiger are quite close—then expect ratings to take another nosedive as they did for the Masters. Compelling stories and final round aside, a Tiger-less tournament is a ratings killer.