It’s a relief that this was an illness rather than another injury. But, as the TV guy said, who do those patrons pay attention to now?

That brings us to this sport’s dilemma, even beyond a renegade tour and the uncertainty over when or if the Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund, which bankrolled LIV Golf, will reach an agreement to help fund the PGA Tour and maybe bring the game’s very best players back together.

Beyond that: When Tiger is done, who on tour — either tour — can get the casual fan’s attention so easily, or even close?

Somebody? Anybody??

It’s telling that even with a pretty good field at Riviera this week, including L.A.-area stars Patrick Cantlay (the 36-hole leader at 13-under), Collin Morikawa, Max Homa and Sahith Theegala, ginormous galleries followed Woods. Presumably, hopefully, he’ll be feeling well enough to perform his duties as tournament host by the end of this weekend, but that’s not nearly the same.

Yet this has been coming.

Woods is now 48. He needs one more Tour victory to pass Sam Snead on the all-time list, but his last one came in October 2019, the Zozo Championship in Japan. In the 51 weeks since he has competed in 15 tournaments including this weekend’s. That’s partly because the pandemic upended the schedule in 2020 and ’21, and partly because of his own physical limitations, including back issues and the horrific automobile crash two days after the 2021 Genesis Invitational that had him laid up for several weeks at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center.

The last two years he had geared his competitive year toward the majors. In 2022 he finished 47th at the Masters, withdrew from the PGA Championship and missed the cut at the British Open on the Old Course at St. Andrews. Last year he was tied for 45th here, withdrew after two rounds at Augusta and wasn’t seen again competitively until his own Hero World Challenge in the Bahamas.

His goal this year, he’d said, was to play once a month. He didn’t look good Friday, and some of that was the consequence of illness. But it was also another reminder that Father Time remains undefeated.

Woods noted after Thursday’s 1-over-par 73 that there was a certain amount of rustiness from inactivity, as well as dealing with a back and an ankle that have been fused and still occasionally register their complaints. Asked if that might be the new normal or if playing once a month might enable him to maintain some sort of rhythm, he said:

“I don’t know what that looks like. I’m hoping that’s the case, hoping that I play that much. As far as the physical ups and downs, that’s just part of my body, that’s part of what it is. That’s all right, I accept it and accept the challenges. … I’m going to be rusty and I have to do a better job at home prepping. We need to do a better job with lifting and treating and continuation of rehab protocols, all those things. I just haven’t done it in a while.”

(Somewhere, Father Time just chuckled.)

True, the Tour has survived without Tiger’s everyday or even frequent presence. And there’s more parity and more mystery on Sundays, than there was in the heyday of Tiger’s hegemony. Yet doesn’t it still feel like there’s something missing in the weeks when he doesn’t play?

Some athletes are stars in their sport. Others — like Tiger, like LeBron James, like Shohei Ohtani — transcend it, to where people who don’t even follow sports know who you’re talking about. And if you run a sport, or are in charge of marketing it and getting the most eyeballs possible at the venues or in front of their TVs, wouldn’t you rather have the latter? Or be terrified at the prospect of replacing them?

It’s going to happen eventually — but hopefully later rather than sooner.

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