JockStocks: Will Tiger quit golf?

According to a Bloomberg report, Tiger Woods is now the top search term that is sending traffic to news sites. Pete Blackshaw from Nielsen Co. told Bloomberg that "There's an almost unquenchable appetite for more content ... Traffic is taking a significant jump." The article adds that Woods-related topics were among the top 20 fastest-growing searches on Google on every day except one during December. Yahoo! added that searches for Woods have increased nearly 40-fold in the past 30 days and that the percenage of blogs commenting on Woods has increased more than tenfold. This increase in Tiger-related activity on the Internet just proves that we can't get enough scandal in our lives. It also proves the immense reach and appeal of Tiger Woods.

Is Tiger going to quit golf? I will never say never; it's his decision. The question is, what would a Tiger "retirement" do to golf? Would attendance at tournaments fall? Would advertising in golf diminish? This is a tough situation. I imagine that the four major tournaments (The Masters, PGA Championship, The British Open, The U.S. Open) will be fine. These tournaments brought in viewers and advertisers well before Tiger came along and will continue to do so. A Tiger retirement should scare the secondary tournaments. Remember that there was a new-found delight in golf when Tiger surfaced, will this diminish if Tiger retires? I know that my passion for golf won't, but I am a 30-something male that has been playing the game (and poorly may I add) since middle school. The only thing that could diminish my golf playing is the continually rising prices at courses (which is ridiculous and should be the subject of an investigation). Yes, there would be an impact on the game of golf should Tiger retire, but I think golf will be strong enough. However, let's never underestimate the global appeal of Tiger Woods.

It is this appeal that makes me wonder if Tiger really will lose endorsements. There is word that Gatorade is discontinuing its Tiger Focus drink, but that has no relation to the current scandal. People will cite a lack of Tiger-related ads on the television, but let's not forget that this isn't golf season ... there usually aren't Tiger-related ads airing right now. Furthermore, a poll of IOL readers suggests that fans believe that Tiger should not be dropped by its sponsors. Of course, I am not a sponsor who depends on Tiger's once unsullied image, so my opinion should be taken with a grain of salt.

The big question now is what golfer will step up to take Tiger's place? I have an unlikely candidate, John Daly. Yes, John Daly. The guru of prip-it and rip-it who once looked like this, now looks like this. That is what lapband surgery will do for you. Supposedly he has his act together and is set to make a comeback ... and is thinking about a movie about his life. Furthermore, John believes that Tiger should be left alone and that the game of golf "needs" Tiger. Daly believes it is Tiger that was instrumental in upping the purses at these tournaments, and I agree with Long John when he says, "Golf needs Tiger more than any other player that's ever played golf. With his record and the way he plays, he just brings people out and he raises the bar for all of us to play better golf as well when he's out there."

Of course, what kind of bizarro world are we living in when we turn to John Daly for advice on Tiger Woods?