As Woods suffers so do TV ratings

For a telling, troubling peek at the future of golf on television without Tiger Woods as a major (or even minor) force, simply check out the ratings for the last two events on the PGA Tour schedule aired by CBS Sports.

Two weeks ago at the inaugural Greenbrier Classic, which didn't have Woods in the field, the tournament did a dismal 1.2 national rating on Sunday, despite a thrilling duel down the stretch between the hottest player in golf, young American Jeff Overton, and veteran Stuart Appleby of Australia. Appleby came from seven behind after 54 holes and beat Overton to win the tournament by a shot with a final-round 59, golf's Holy Grail score, only the fifth time that's ever been done in a tour event.

But hardly anyone was watching.

The Greenbrier Classic took the place of the old Buick Open on the 2010 tour schedule. In 2009, with Woods in the field and eventually winning, that event had a robust 3.7 rating on Sunday, more than triple the number for the final round at the Greenbrier.

This past weekend, at the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational in Akron, Ohio, Woods was in the field, sort of, though he was hopelessly out of contention from the start after an opening-round 74.

Woods had long since finished playing when CBS came on the air both Saturday and Sunday. The rating Saturday was a 1.6, compared with a 2.4 the same tournament drew on Saturday in 2009, when Woods was high up on the leader board. On Sunday this year, the Bridgestone did a 2.3; on Sunday in 2009, with Woods ultimately winning the tournament, the number was more than double - a 4.7 rating.

This tumultuous year, Woods clearly has hit bottom in terms of his personal life, and judging from the weekend, his golf game, as well. In the Bridgestone, he finished with an 18-over-par total of 298 and ended up in 78th, two shots better than dead last, his worst performance over four days in any tournament he's played since turning professional in 1996.

If you think Woods might be just a tad concerned about the state of his once majestic game, how do you think the networks, the tour's corporate sponsors and its tournament directors around the country are feeling at the moment watching him flail and fail miserably, looking dismally dispirited and seemingly uninterested? . . .

Bottom line, the reality is that without Woods playing in full flight, charging up the board Friday and Saturday, pumping his fists and hoisting trophies on Sunday, the game is just not the same, particularly for the millions of casual viewers who tend to tune in only when he's in the hunt.

"We all know the impact Tiger has on ratings," CBS Sports President Sean McManus said this week, insisting that he was "not worried" that Woods most likely won't be a factor again this week in the PGA. "I can't control it. You just hope for the best and that there is drama on Sunday."

The good news is that Woods could erase the memory of his lost weekend in Ohio in a hurry with a decent showing this week in Wisconsin. The bad news is that Whistling Straits, on the shores of Lake Michigan, demands even more precision driving and strong iron play than Firestone required last week. And at the moment, Woods seems to have no earthly clue which way his ball is going from swing to swing, from putt to putt.