Even a little Tiger is better than no Tiger at all

The only certainty about Tiger Woods is that he won't be playing very much golf, and that's if he decides it's worth trying to scale a mountain taller than all the previous ones.

Woods walked into the room at Albany Golf Club without a noticeable limp as he climbed onto the stage and took his seat behind a microphone. He left the stage a little more gingerly, and conceded his leg and back were aching just sitting there.

Those days were fading with age, and they probably are gone due to a badly damaged right leg stemming from a car crash in the Los Angeles suburbs some 10 months ago. Woods mentioned the possibility of amputation in the early stages of being hospitalized.

This is a slow road back before he can even think about the climb.

So much chatter is on the Masters in April, without consideration that Augusta National might be the toughest course to walk of any tournament he plays. Woods said he would love to return to the British Open at St. Andrews, where the steepest climb is crossing the Swilcan Bridge.

Woods has ruled out being a fulltime player, and the argument can be made he already was headed in that direction. He played only 13 events on the PGA Tour in 2019, the last time he was healthy and the world wasn't in the throes of a pandemic.

The best-case scenario is a schedule geared around the majors, similar to Ben Hogan's in the 1950s after his near-fatal car accident. Hogan was 37 when he won the 1950 U.S. Open. Woods turns 46 at the end of next month.

Would it be enough to satisfy his legion of fans for him to play only a few tournaments a year?

The short answer is yes. Because even a little Tiger is better than no Tiger at all.

Abraham Ancer might become a footnote in history as the last player to face Woods in match play. It was Sunday singles at Royal Melbourne in the 2019 Presidents Cup, and Woods hit the ball as crisply as he did all year and won on the 16th hole.

In a loss, it was a special memory for Ancer.

"I was happy I got to experience him at a high level in a high-pressure match. It was cool for me and I learned a lot," Ancer said.

Equally memorable was the first time Ancer played in the same tournament as Woods, at Torrey Pines in 2018, and he wound up in the group behind him starting the final round on the back nine. Ancer recalled seeing "mayhem."

"Any time Tiger shows up at an event, it's completely different, no matter how he's playing," Ancer said. "He transforms events."