Jolt Country

"Elric" Tiger Woods was behind, but then came back and won... a left-handed guy was in it for a bit, but then he wasn't. Some fat guys chortled in the distance and for some reason I haven't seen Payne Stewart on the leaderboard in years.

How was that?

It's Eldrick, and I'm temporarily suspending the lighthearted, yet completely absent TigerCast series just to say this:

I know golf is a dull, boring, elitist game that barely qualifies as a sport due to the fact that even as a professional, you can drink and smoke while you're doing it. I know I'm alone in my interest in golf here, and especially my interest in Tiger Woods, but I mean, if you're even the slightest bit interested in sports or single-minded perfection, it's time to sit up and take notice.

Today he won the Arnold Palmer Invitational, but that's not it. Lookie here:

1. He won it on a clutch, ridiculously curving 25 foot putt on the last hole.

2. He has played in four tournaments this year, worldwide. The worst he has finished in those four is first place. Before Tiger Woods arrived on the golf scene, winning four tournaments in a single year was a legendary performance. He has already won four, and we haven't even reached the 1/4 mark of the season.

3. He has won five straight PGA Tour tournaments (seven worldwide). Before Tiger Woods came around, exactly two people had won five or more in a row, and only once, and way back before 1950. Tiger has now had three such streaks, in an era where the level of competition is much higher.

4. Even his closest competitors have, after ten years, finally given up talking about how they're gonna catch him. Even Phil Mickelson now is talking about "focusing on having a successful career". In a game where 140 professional-level people are invited to play every week, 139 of them have already conceded that they hold no hope for being on top.

5. He tied Ben Hogan this week for third most all-time PGA Tour victories. Ben Hogan is of the great legends of the game. Only two players (Jack Nicklaus, Sam Snead) have won more in history. And Tiger is 32 years old, when most players are just beginning the prime of their career.

All I'm saying is, it's a special thing when you get to watch someone doing something, and knowing that they are better at it than anyone else that has ever been, and WAY better at it than anyone else doing it at the same time. He hasn't caught Jack yet in total majors and total victories, so some will say "but... but...". But... please. There's never been anybody close.

Watch any tournament he's in. He just looks different from everyone else out there. You can tell its him from 500 yards away, because he just looks different.

"Yeah, black."

Just thought I'd get that out of the way.