Tiger Woods

Tiger Woods has decided to get rid of Steve Williams as his caddie. Woods announced on his website Wednesday that he and Williams, who have been together since March 1999, will no longer be working together. Woods said only that it was time for a change. Woods did not say who would replace Williams, or when he would return. Williams has worked the last two majors for Adam Scott of Australia.  

Tiger Woods finally brought the buzz back to the very thing that made him famous - winning. Two weeks after another injury scare, and two days before his former coach's book goes on sale, Woods looked dominant as ever Sunday in the Arnold Palmer Invitational. It was his first PGA Tour victory since a sex scandal at the end of 2009 led to one of the greatest downfalls in sports. And with the Masters only two weeks away, Woods looks more capable of ever than resuming his pursuit of Jack Nicklaus in the majors.

Robert Rock of England held his nerve to hold off Rory McIlroy and Tiger Woods and win the Abu Dhabi Golf Championship on Sunday. The 117th-ranked Rock shot a 2-under 70 for an overall 13-under 275 to beat the Northern Irishman by a shot and the American by two. Rock and Woods were tied for the lead going into the final round. After both players opened with birdies on two of the first three holes, Rock took the lead for good when Woods bogeyed the next two holes. Woods closed the gap to one after Rock's bad chip led to a bogey on No. 13. But the 34-year-old Englishman had birdies on two of the next three holes to seize control.

So what exactly constitutes if Tiger Woods is back or not? What does it mean to be "back?" Does he need a major to win? Does he have to win the Ryder Cup by himself? Does he have to mow down the field at every tournament and win by 10 shots? Woods won the Players Championship today by two shots against the best field outside of a major championship. The Players is considered the fifth major, because it is such a tough event. And he looked in control the whole time, except for one hole where the tee shot got away from him. In a word, he was dominant and that's what Tiger of old was. SO I say he is back.

ST. ANDREWS, Scotland (AP) - Louis Oosthuizen shot a 3-under 69 and will go to the final round of the British Open with a four-stroke lead. The South African's total is 15-under 201. His closest challenger is England's Paul Casey, whose 67 left him at 205 overall Saturday. No one else is within seven shots of Oosthuizen, who failed to make the cut in three previous Open appearances. Tiger Woods struggled to a 73 that left him a dozen shots behind, giving him little hope of winning a third straight Open at St. Andrews.

Rory McIlroy will take a four-stroke lead to the final round of the Masters after shooting a 2-under 70 on a sweltering Saturday at Augusta National. McIlroy struggled through the front nine, but none of his closest challengers made much of a move. When he rolled in a 25-foot birdie at the 17th, he suddenly had plenty of breathing room going into Sunday. The 21-year-old from Northern Ireland has been in the lead every day, and he'll have his biggest advantage yet with a 12-under 204. Four shots back are 2009 Masters champion Angel Cabrera, Charl Schwartzel, K.J. Choi and Jason Day. Tiger Woods went the wrong way on moving day, struggling to a 74 that left him a daunting seven shots behind.

It was another weekend wipeout for Tiger Woods at a major championship. Woods shot an even-par 72 on Sunday - after finishing a third-round 74 earlier in the day - and ended up 11 strokes behind winner Rory McIlroy at the PGA Championship. It was a disappointing slide for Woods, who was tied for the lead after two rounds but is still trying for his first major title since 2008. This chance slipped away Saturday, when he bogeyed three of seven holes to start the third round.

Rory McIlroy has won the PGA Championship, routing the field by a record eight strokes Sunday for his second major title. McIlroy led throughout the final round at Kiawah Island, shooting a 6-under 66 and eclipsing Jack Nicklaus' seven-shot victory in 1980. McIlroy sank a 25-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole to break the record and finish at 13-under 275. David Lynn shot a 68 to finish second. McIlroy won the U.S. Open last year at Congressional in a similar runaway, beating Jason Day by eight strokes.

Charl Schwartzel has won the Masters by two strokes over Adam Scott and Jason Day after a wild final day at Augusta National. The 26-year-old South African closed with four straight birdies, making a 20-footer at the final hole to wrap up a 6-under 66. He finished 14-under 274, enough to deny Australia its first green jacket. Scott shot a 67 and Day finished with two straight birdies for a 68, leaving both Aussies at 276. It wasn't enough to hold off Schwartzel, who gives South Africa another major champion.

Tiger Woods finished his first tournament in four months with an even-par 70 at Firestone to finish in the middle of the pack at the Bridgestone Invitational. Woods had a double bogey on the sixth hole and went seven straight drives without finding a fairway. He finished with two birdies on the last three holes, giving him a 1-over 281 for the week. The last time Woods finished a tournament was his tie for fourth at the Masters on April. He last played May 12 when he withdrew from The Players Championship after nine holes with left leg injuries that cost him a chance to play in two majors.

The biggest news of the Masters on Saturday happened on Friday. After Tiger Woods hit his second shot on the par-5 15th hole in the second round, Tiger decided to take his one-stroke penalty and his fourth shot from where he hit his second shotoi the fairway. Except it wasn't where he hit his second shot, it was two yards further back. And that's illegal. Problem was Tiger didn't know that, neither did his playing partner or the rules official walking with the group or the rules committee when it happened.

For What it's Worth-- April 13th -- I'm sure that coaches and players wouldn't agree, but I'm ready for college hoops to start again.  One week's hiatus is enough, even with the grind of the post season-I've found myself going through hoops withdraw.  No, the NBA doesn't quite rise to the level of a fix---yet---although when the playoffs start it's always great theater. Thanks, Jake- - I was sorry, if not surprised to hear of Jake White's departure from Wichita State.  Not only do I like Jake, but I like the upside of his game as well.  We only got glimpses of what he was capable of--eleven points here, nine rebounds there, but those were his topsides.

Tiger Woods got a reprieve Saturday in the Masters when he was given a two-shot penalty for a bad drop but allowed to stay in the tournament. Woods' shot on the 15th hole of the second round hit the flag stick and bounced back into the water. He took his penalty drop two yards behind where he hit the original shot, which was a violation of the rules. Augusta National added the two-shot penalty to his score, meaning he had a 73 instead of a 71 and now is five shots out of the lead.

China's Tianlang Guan shot 73 at the Master's on Thursday which, in and of itself, isn't overly impressive - until you learn that Guan is 14 years old. That's 14 as in popping zits and still finding humor in fart jokes---are you kidding me? Masterful? I wish that Tiger Woods hadn't gone with the 'winning takes care of everything' tag in his latest Nike spot. It has too much of a double entendre - sure, we all know about his struggles to get back to the world's top ranking, but the thought that winning takes care of his continuous infidelities is ridiculously arrogant.

What was your greatest accomplishment at 14 years old? Was it shooting a 73 in your very first Masters Tournament? Didn't think so. The best round by the youngest Masters participant ever was carded Thursday in the first round at Augusta National from Tian Lang Guan, and eighth grader from China. The reigning Asian Amateur champion stole the headlines from the likes of Sergio Garcia, Dustin Johnson and Tiger Woods with his over par round. Guan is the talk of the tournament and if he makes the cut, Tiger will get the media treatment usually reserved for him when he overshadows other great players.

What were you doing the last time Tiger Woods was the top player in the world? Halloween of 2010 was the day when Lee Westwood overtook Woods as the best player in the world according to the Official World Golf Rankings. Monday March 25th, 2013 is the day he reclaimed the spot with a win at Bay Hill Country Club at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. If you've been watching him this season and the end of last season, you could see his game rounding into form. He was striking the ball better, driving it better, putting too. And now it's all coming together.

What a season it has been for Rory McIlory. The Northern Irishman has been on vacation all over Europe, jetsetting around with tennis star and girlfriend Caroline Wozniacki. Oh yeah, and he won three times on the PGA Tour, his last coming Monday at the Deutsche Bank Championship outside Boston. McIlory battled head to head and held off Tiger Woods to win the second leg of the Fedex Cup playoffs, and jump into first place in the standings. If Tiger was the first wave of new golfers to turn the game, Rory is the second coming.

It was another weekend wipeout for Tiger Woods at a major championship. Woods shot an even-par 72 on Sunday - after finishing a third-round 74 earlier in the day - and ended up 11 strokes behind winner Rory McIlroy at the PGA Championship. It was a disappointing slide for Woods, who was tied for the lead after two rounds but is still trying for his first major title since 2008. This chance slipped away Saturday, when he bogeyed three of seven holes to start the third round.