The Open, The Knee, and the Greatness that is Tiger

I'd been waiting to figure out the right words and the proper sense of perspective in which to put all that we saw at Torrey Pines this past weekend and into a memorable Monday.  Greatest US Open ever?  Perhaps.  It certainly was from Tig's perspective.  Nobody can deny that it was fun to watch - it was the classic story of the underdog trying to take down the greatest.  And I'll be damned if this overweight, hook-prone, poker playing, supposed over-the-hill 'dog didn't take all but the last bite he needed to win this thing. 

The transcendent nature of what we saw goes beyond mere television ratings too.  This at least encroaches on one of those "where were you when..." moments.  As it turns out, there were a heck of a lot of people working during the Monday playoff.  That didn't stop many of them from catching a peek or more of the playoff - at work or even in the markets. 

But the true measuring stick of what we saw at Torrey Pines will come with the stories that accompany it down the road.  People remember Ben Hogan winning US Opens but he is most remembered for winning one after getting struck by a car.  People remember Big Jack winning several times at Augusta, but the most memorable is the comeback.  Well here comes Tiger with 14 professional majors and it's hard to imagine how any will be talked about more than this.  Certainly there's tremendous cultural and historical significance to his very first major, but that one was also in the bag when the sun set on Saturday night.  Torrey will be everlasting because he had to birdie 18 twice in two days just to stay alive.  It will be more memorable because of a valiant head-to-head battle on Monday with Rocco, who just would not roll over like so many have in the past.  And it will be part of ever golf fan's lore when you consider just how Tiger did this.  After not playing a competitive round for two months; after rehabbing from arthroscopic knee surgery to clean up some cartilage damage; after suffering dual compound fractures in his left leg; and after sustaining a ruptured* ACL last summer.

* By the way, ruptured means broken.  It doesn't mean slightly or partially torn.  It means split in half.  Ye Gods. 

Put this in perspective.  Since rupturing his ACL, Tiger
* Won at Firestone
* Won the PGA
* Finished 2nd to Lefty at the Deutsche Bank
* Won the BMW
* Won the TOUR Championship
* Won the Target World Challenge
* Won the Buick Invy at Torrey Pines
* Won at Dubai
* Won the Match Play
* Won the Arnold Palmer Championship
* Finished 5th at Doral (oh the HORROR)
* Finished 2nd at the Masters
* Won the US Open.

13 tournaments.  10 wins.  Two seconds.  13 Top 5s.  Thanks for coming. 

I still don't believe people fully understand or appreciate the greatness of this athlete.  And I'm not sure how to put it into words.  Simply quoting this list of facts is a start.  The phrase "best of all time" is appropriate, but I'm not even sure it's sufficient. 

Finally some closing comments:
* A hearty "fuck you" goes out to those hockey dolts who dared question Tiger's toughness.  Yeah hockey players are tough.  That doesn't mean golfers aren't or can't be. 
* People are saying this could be the end of Tiger?  Fer Chrissakes, he's in the prime of his career and is one of the best conditioned athletes you'll find anywhere.  He'll have access to the best possible rehab programs and we all know that he'll rehab like mad to get his knee to the best shape it can be in.  Puh-leeze.  You might not see Tiger back at his peak even in 2009, but the next decade will surely show us Tiger at his most dominant.  I don't believe we've seen the best of him yet. 
* And to those questioning whether or not Tiger should have even played in the US Open - just STFU.  He didn't make the knee any worse in doing so.