Tiger: "I Made Incredibly Bad Decisions"

In 35 surprisingly relaxed minutes Monday afternoon, Tiger Woods talked about how far out of control his life had gotten, how he played golf last year with a partially torn Achilles tendon and how he missed his son's first birthday because he was in therapy.

Giving his first group interview since his life began coming part last Thanksgiving, Woods called his first day back in front of golf galleries at the Masters "a great day" and said golf is fun again to him.

Though Woods has been criticized for his unwillingness to talk to the media, other than a public statement in February and two five-minute interviews two weeks ago, his question-and-answer session was not contentious.

Woods was asked about his relationship with Dr. Anthony Galea, who is under investigation for his use of human growth hormone and talked about the events that eventually led him to spend 45 days in therapy, though he declined to specify what he was in treatment for. Woods also declined to offer any more details on the auto accident on Thanksgiving weekend.

"I made incredibly bad decisions," Woods said.

Among the highlights:

-- Woods said the toughest parts of his ordeal were "having to look at myself in a light I never intended to look at myself...and how far I had gotten from the core morals my mom and dad had taught me" and "the constant harassment of my wife and family."

--He said "the fact I won golf tournaments was irrelevant" compared to the damage he did to himself and his family;

-- He acknowledged having Galea perform a platement enrichment procedure to help his recovery from knee surgery in 2008 but denied using human growth hormone or any performance-enhancing drugs. "I've never taken an illegal drug in my life," he said.

Woods said he suffered a torn right Achilles tendon in December, 2008 while rehabbing his knee. He said he has volunteered to cooperate with federal authorities if they want to interview him.

-- Asked why he waited until after the events of Thanksgiving weekend and the days after to begin changing his behavior and enter therapy, Woods said, "I hadn't hit far enough on the bottom to make myself look at what I'd done and engaged in. That's when I went to rehab."

-- Woods said he spent Christmas with his family then left for rehab, causing him to miss his son Charlie's first birthday.

"That hurt a lot," Woods said. "I vowed never to miss another one. I can't go back to where I was. It's something I regret and probably will the rest of my life."

Furyk On Tiger's Gallery: "Extremely Positive."

Tiger Woods hit some good shots, he hit some scratchy shots, he smiled, he chatted with the gallery and he seemed to have fun playing a Monday practice round at the Masters with Fred Couples and, later, Jim Furyk.

Woods' much anticipated return to golf on the public stage had plenty of respectful applause and no noticeable heckling Monday as the world's No. 1 player went 18 holes, finishing about 90 minutes before his scheduled 2 p.m. press conference.

Woods didn't stop to talk after his practice round but Couples, who played all 18 holes with Woods, and Furyk, who played the last six, both said it felt familiar being with Woods again.

"It was extremely positive. I expected it to be positive. It was probably even better," Furyk said of the gallery reaction.

Patrons were just entering the property when Woods and Couples teed off but as the day went on, their gallery swelled. Being Monday, there weren't many players on the course but it hardly seemed to matter as most of the gallery sought out the Woods group.

Woods hit a variety of shots from different spots around the course, occasionally wrestling with hitting shots to the left.

"I"m sure Tiger was a little on edge for not playing and trying to get his game sharp," Furyk said.

"I treated him like I always treat him. I didn't tease him as much as I would usually so I'll wait for the second time."

Couples was his usual laid-back self, enjoying what had the feel of a casual round of golf among friends.

"He's the best player in the world," Couples said. "He hasn't played any golf in a while but he's still the best player in the world. I love the way he plays. I think he'll do well here at Augusta.

"His intimdation factor is always there but you have to play good golf. He hasn't played much. It would be crazy for me to say he's not going to do well but it would crazy for me to say he's the guy to beat because he hasn't played a round of golf in five or six months."

Geoff Ogilvy played by himself in the group behind Woods, starting nearly 45 minutes later. Ogilvy cruised around Augusta National's first nine, took a 30-minute breakfast then finished his round, watching the large gallery ahead.

"It sounded like they were excited to watch him play golf and I think pretty soon it will be back to normal," Ogilvy said.

Woods Gets Nice But Subdued Reaction

One thing became evident early Monday during Tiger Woods' practice round at the Masters:

The curiousity factor hasn't diminshed.

As Woods and Fred Couples made their way around Augusta National Monday morning, the gallery around them continued to grow. At times, fans were stacked a dozen deep around greens as Woods and Couples played in the warm sunshine.

Woods was greeted warmly but without loud ovations. When he and Couples would approach greens, Couples tended to receive louder ovations than Woods. Anyone who came hoping to hear heckling was sorely disappointed. There was none.

However, Woods seemed noticeably more animinated in dealing with the galleries, chatting occasionally with fans, even shaking hands with a man beside the second tee. Woods looked relaxed, laughing with Couples and their caddies as they walked in the sunshine.

Four security guards walked with Woods and Couples, two walking down each side of the fairway.

Woods' play was spotty. He pulled his opening tee shot far to the left of the first fairway then hit a second ball into play. He made a mess of the par-3 fourth hole and pulled his tee shot left again on the par-5 eighth hole.

Tiger starts his day with a goatee and a smile

Tiger Woods walked into his new public world Monday morning wearing gray slacks, a pink and gray striped shirt, a goatee -- and a smile.

Playing a practice round with Fred Couples at Augusta National, Woods was in the second group on the course -- Soren Hanson beat them out there by a few minutes -- and a gallery was quickly gathering around the world's No. 1 player.

Patrons weren't allowed onto the grounds until 8 a..m., but hundreds were already around the first and second holes as Woods played his first round in front of spectators since his personal life came unraveled on Thanksgiving weekend.

On a cool, soft morning, Woods received a warm welcome. One woman shouted, 'We love you, Tiger,' after he hit his opening tee shot. Walking down the first fairway with Couples, the sound of cameras clicking could be heard. Fans are allowed to bring cameras into the practice rounds and there were plenty of professional photographs along to document the day, as well.

Augusta National chairman Billy Payne was standing in the trees off the right side of the first fairway watching as Woods and Couples walked past.

Woods was smiling and laughing with Couples and seemed to make a point to acknowledge fans watching them play. After hitting his tee shot at the second hole, Woods chatted with a couple of patrons beside the ropes, reaching out to shake hands with a man who offered his hand.

What If Tiger Wins The Masters?

Once we get past Monday at the Masters with Tiger Woods finally coming face to face with fans and the media, we will move on to a different issue:

What if Tiger wins the Masters?

He could, you know.

If you're picking five guys with a chance, you can't leave him off the list. You could but you'd feel antsy about it.

If Tiger wins this Masters, it would be great for television ratings, great for him and great that it would give the world something else to talk about rather than whatever TMZ and the tabloids keep churning out about him.

But would it be great for the PGA Tour?

Of course it would.

There's one school of thought that if Tiger wins at Augusta, it makes everyone else playing the tour look like highly compensated chumps. He sits out nearly six months, gets filleted in public in the most embarrassing way and still comes back to win the year's first major championship.

What does that say about everyone else on tour?

It would say the same thing we've been saying about Tiger for more than a decade -- he's that once in a lifetime talent. That's what tour players have been saying about him every time he steps on their necks in a tournament. They know it better than the rest of us.

To some people, Tiger can't do anything to redeem himself. He's lost them. But I suspect that's a relatively small number of people, though a good many of them seem to be in the media.

The larger group wants to see Tiger do well again. It won't alleviate their disappointment in learning he wasn't all he was projected to be but time and action can soften that. I think the fatigue factor has also set in. Most of us are sick and tired of hearing about Tiger's private life. We get the picture. It isn't flattering but it's time to move on.

The reason we've cared about Tiger is because of the way he plays golf. He has taken the world's toughest game to conquer and come closer than anyone to conquering it.

Can he win this Masters?

What do you think?

Singh, Scott Add Names To Quail Hollow List

Vijay Singh and Adam Scott have added their names to the commitment list for the Quail Hollow Championship later this month.

Singh won the 2006 tournament while Scott has been a regular at Quail Hollow.

They join an already strong list of early commitments that includes Lee Westwood, Jim Furyk, Rory McIlroy, Lucas Glover, Padraig Harrington, defending champion Sean O'Hair,, Rickie Fowler, Kenny Perry, Bill Haas and others.

Phil Mickelson is expected to play though won't make an official commitment until closer to the tournament. Tiger Woods hasn't given an indication if he plans to play at Quail Hollow this year.
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A Masters Monday Like No Other

Aside from a couple of weather-delayed finishes, this will be the most anticipated Monday in Masters history.

Typically, Masters Mondays are soft as players arrive and begin their preparation in earnest. It's easy even with enormous galleries taking advantage of the opportunity to spend a few hours at Augusta National.

This one's different because it's the day Tiger Woods officially returns to golf. He's already been to Augusta National to play practice rounds and he may play there on Sunday.

But Monday will be the first time Woods plays in front of galleries and it's the day he'll face the media in the interview room. Monday will have an uncommon buzz.

Fred Couples has said he's planning to play a practice round with Woods Monday at Augusta and they'll probably be on the course early, given Tiger's 2 p.m. date with the media. It wouldn't be surprising to see Mark O'Meara playing with them.

It will be interesting to see how Woods interacts with the spectators, who won't be allowed on the grounds until 8 a.m. Will he talk more to them? Will he pose for the occasional photo? Or will he stayed tucked beneath the bill of his cap, rarely glancing sideways?

Woods' press conference has drawn so much attention that only a limited number of media members will be admitted to the interview room. There's only so much space in the interview room and it's too small to accommodate everyone who wants to be in there.

I'm guessing Tiger will spend a minimum of 30 minutes, maybe up to an hour, taking questions. Given what he's said in his public statement and the two television interviews he's done, I think we have a good idea of what we'll hear.

He'll answer some things, avoid others. I don't need to hear details from him. He'll be pushed for details on what happened the night of his auto accident, when all of this began unfolding, but it's unlikely he'll offer more than he has.

It will be an uncomfortable time for him but once it's done, he can move on. When asked about his troubles at future events, he can say he said all he's going to say at the Masters. It won't satisfy everyone but he'll understand that going in.

It's important for Woods to do this press conference and get it behind him. It's remarkable the amount of coverage his personal life has received. It says something about our culture that Woods made the front page of the New York Post 20 consecutive days, one day longer than the 9/11 attacks were on the front page in the city where they happened.

Masters week starts Monday. This year, the world will be watching.