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Golfer Tiger Woods (L) and recording artist David Cook appear at Tiger Jam 2012 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center April 28, 2012 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
(April 27, 2012 – Source: Ethan Miller/Getty Images North America)

(PhatzRadio / USA Today) — Tiger Woods will be back on the PGA Tour this week for the Wells Fargo Championship, and if he plays well, the question of the year will be asked again.

Is he really back?

Over four days at the Masters, the answer went from emphatically yes at the beginning to maybe never again after he struggled to his worst finish as a pro at Augusta National, a tie for 40th.

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That came two weeks after Woods seemed to be closer than ever to his old form, when he captured the Arnold Palmer Invitational by five strokes over Graeme McDowell to claim his first PGA Tour victory in more than two years.

What happens this week is anyone’s guess, but this much is certain: Whatever Woods does will makes news 24-7.

The circumstances were much different, obviously, but Jack Nicklaus went through some of this late in his career, when he admittedly lost a little bit of interest at times.

Nicklaus had his growing business empire and always has been a family man, so there were times when his golf seemed to take a back seat.

Of course, when he had his droughts between major championships, like between 1967 and 1970, or 1975 and 1978, he didn’t have to read about it night and day — only four times a season when the majors rolled along.

The Golden One didn’t really have anyone to chase the way Woods does, but when he would regain his interest and charge up the leaderboard in the majors, “Jack is Back” signs would pop up in the galleries.

Not only that, the crowds would start chanting that phrase, the way they did in 1980 at Baltusrol, when he captured his fourth and final U.S. Open title after another two-year drought.

When Sports Illustrated hit newsstands a few days later, the headline simply read: “Jack’s Back.”

That was the 16th of his eventual total of 18 victories in the Grand Slam events, a mark that seemed destined to fall when Woods captured the 2008 U.S. Open at Torrey Pines in an 18-hole playoff for the ages against Rocco Mediate.

Woods earned his 14th major title on that epic Monday, and it seemed only a matter of time before the record would fall. But who could have imagined what has happened since?

Not only did his life, his swing and his body seem to be falling apart at the same time, but all the gory details were there for everybody and anybody to read about every single day on the Internet and in the tabloids. Even the mainstream media eventually had to join in.

Tiger seemed to have put all of that behind him early this season, and even some of his critics claimed that he seemed close to being back — there’s that word again.

Even though he didn’t win, he was in contention while tying for third in the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship and tying for second in the Honda Classic, finishing two strokes behind Rory McIlroy by closing with an 8-under-par 62.

The “Tiger’s Back” talk reached a crescendo when he won at Bay Hill and displayed the control he had at his zenith, seemingly unperturbed after he hit a ball out of bounds when a woman screamed during his backswing.

Then at Augusta, he came unraveled. The new swing nurtured by instructor Sean Foley was invaded by the old one taught him by Hank Haney, causing him to hit the ball all over Augusta National.

Woods cursed, he took huge divots out of the hallowed turf in anger after hitting bad shots and even kicked his 9-iron after hitting a poor tee shot on the 16th hole in the second round.

It wouldn’t have been pretty even at the Quad Cities Open, but this was the Masters, after all.

“He has lost his game and lost his mind,” CBS commentator Nick Faldo said.

While he was outwardly confident and relaxed while playing so well two weeks earlier at Bay Hill, Woods seemed to be on edge all week at Augusta.

With his game seemingly back, did he put too much pressure on himself? Was it physical or mental, or a combination? Was it the result of events on the course or off?

In the old days, it would not have mattered because Tiger never lost focus.

“He’s still got a long road ahead of him, let’s put it that way,” McDowell said of what happened to Woods in the Masters.

Perhaps Tiger has to get complete control of himself before he can do the same with his golf ball, no matter how much work he puts in with Foley.

If he can’t do that, maybe he won’t ever really be back.

Coming up

PGA Tour

Wells Fargo Championship

When: Thursday-Sunday.

Where: Quail Hollow Club in Charlotte.

TV: Thursday and Friday, 3-7 p.m. ET on Golf Channel; Saturday and Sunday, 3-6 p.m. ET on CBS.

Last year: Lucas Glover made a par on the first playoff hole to turn back Jonathan Byrd and claim the third victory of his PGA Tour career and first since the 2009 U.S. Open at Bethpage Black. Glover nursed a one-stroke lead down the stretch by finishing with three gutsy pars, sinking a 7-foot putt on the final hole to close with a 3-under-par 69. Byrd, the 36-hole leader, came along later to hole a 15-foot birdie putt on the 72nd hole and close with a 72 and force extra holes. However, Byrd drove into a fairway bunker in the playoff and hit his approach into a hazard left of the green en route to a bogey, allowing Glover to end his winless streak at 41 tournaments by two-putting from 25 feet.

Champions Tour

Insperity Championship

When: Friday-Sunday.

Where: Woodlands Country Club in the The Woodlands, Texas.

TV: Friday, 6:30-8:30 p.m. ET; Saturday, 6:30-9:30, and Sunday, 7-9:30 p.m. on Golf Channel each day.

Last year: Brad Faxon, who won eight times on the PGA Tour, claimed his first victory on the senior circuit without hitting a shot on Sunday. Rain washed out the final round, and Faxon, who held a one-stroke lead over Tommy Armour III, was declared the winner. Faxon, whose previous victory came in the 2005 Buick Championship, was playing in his sixth event on the Champions Tour after turning 50 the previous August. He took the lead into the final round by shooting a bogey-free, 7-under-par 65 in windy conditions during the second round. Fax birdied the first three holes, later took the lead with a six-foot birdie putt on the 17th and holed a four-footer for par on the final hole.

LPGA

HSBC Brasil Cup

When: May 5-6

Where: Itanhanga Golf Club in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

TV: No live television in the United States.

Last year: Mariajo Uribe of Colombia, who played college golf at UCLA, carded five birdies in the first seven holes while shooting 6-under-par 66 in the final round to capture the unofficial 36-hole event by one stroke over Lindsey Wright of Australia, who played at Pepperdine. The tournament is being played for the fourth consecutive year to enhance interest for the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio, where golf will be an official event for the first time since 1904.

Notes, quotes

•Lexi Thompson, the rising 17-year-old star on the LPGA tour, needs a date for her high school prom, and she obviously loves a man in uniform.

Thompson has posted a video on YouTube asking members of the military who are between the ages of 18 and 20 to send their qualifications to her Facebook page if they are interested.

“For my date, I am looking for somebody special and that I respect, that’s why I am choosing a guy from the service,” Thompson said in the video. “So if you are up for this challenge, here is what you need to do.

” … If you have any questions, go to my Facebook fan page or tweet me @lexi with hashtag #lexi prom. Hopefully I’ll see one of you there.”

Thompson, who last year became the youngest player to win on both the LPGA tour and the Ladies European Tour, said this is her way of saying “Thank you” to the U.S. Armed Forces.

Since she posted the video, Thompson has gotten plenty of suggestions on her fan page, with one person commenting: “Now there is an incentive to come home in one piece.”

“Air Force guys are pretty sexy,” read another comment, while another urged her to “make sure it is a Marine,” and yet another said she should consider choosing a wounded warrior.

The military man whom Thompson selects will be provided a free trip to Coral Springs, Fla., for the prom at Glades High School on May 18.

• The Royal & Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews announced that the course at Royal Lytham & St. Annes has been lengthened by 181 yards for 152nd Open Championship, which begins July 19.

All but two holes on the course have had some type of alteration since the oldest championship in the world was contested there in 2001, when David Duval won by three strokes over Niclas Fasth of Sweden.

“The course will still be a challenge for the modern player, and players will have to remember there are over 200 bunkers on Royal Lytham,” said Peter Dawson, chief executive of the R&A.

Dawson said Royal Lytham & St. Annes has been increased to 7,086 yards and will remain a par 70, with the most significant changes made to the seventh, 10th and 11th holes.

No. 10 is 52 yards longer than it was 11 years ago, while No. 7 is 35 yards longer and the green has been completely reworked. No. 11 measures 592 yards, 56 yards longer than in 2001.

The only holes that remain unchanged are the par-4 fourth hole and par-3 12th.

Dawson announced another major change: Spectators will be allowed to bring their mobile phones, which they will be able to use in designated areas.

“We have taken advice from the various tours and spectators, so we have taken the opportunity to reintroduce (mobile phones),” Dawson said. “We had taken the decision reluctantly some years ago to ban them, and while we know it will not be easy for marshals, we are allowing them back on the course based on trust.

“Also, we are hoping there will be peer-group pressure if people do use the phone in places where they shouldn’t.”

Mobile phones have been banned at the Open since 2007 at Carnoustie.

• The International Federation of PGA Tours has announced that the eighth edition of the WGC-HSBC Champions will be played Nov. 1-4 on the Olazabal Course at Mission Hills Guangdong in Shenzhen, China, about 20 minutes from Hong Kong.

The tournament was played at Sheshen International Golf Club in Shanghai from its inception in 2005.

Developed by the late David Chu, the Mission Hills Resort is considered one of the finest tournament facilities in China, with 12 golf courses on the property.

“It is a fitting tribute to David Chu that Mission Hills Guangdong will host the 2012 HSBC Champions,” commissioner Tim Finchem of the PGA Tour said. “David Chu’s vision for the growth of the game of golf in China was unparalleled, and he, along with his sons Ken and Tenniel Chu, have executed on that vision.

“I have been to Mission Hills Guangdong on numerous occasions, and I know that the 2012 HSBC Champions will be an outstanding success there.”

The Olazabal Course, designed by two-time Masters champion Jose Maria Olazabal of Spain, is the longest course at Mission Hills, measuring 7,320 yards.

Mission played host to the Mission Hills World Cup in 2007, 2008 and 2009 and also was the site of the 1995 World Club, the first international golf competition in China.

Previous winners of the HSBC Champions include David Howell of England (2005), Y.E. Yang of South Korea (2006), Phil Mickelson (2007 and 2009), Sergio Garcia of Spain (2008), Francesco Molinari of Italy (2010) and Martin Kaymer of Germany (2011).

The HSBC Champions has been played under the World Golf Championships umbrella since 2009.

• By winning the 2002 PGA Championship at Hazeltine, Rich Beem earned a 10-year exemption on the European Tour.

Beemer hasn’t needed it — until this year.

Beem, who has three victories in his PGA Tour career but none since that PGA title, has no status on the PGA Tour for 2012 other than that of past champion, and he has not been able to get as many sponsor’s exemptions as he would have liked.

With his last chance for exempt status in Europe, he took up membership and wonders why he didn’t do it before.

“Every year, my agent asked me if I wanted to use my exemption,” Beem said while taking a week off at home in Austin, Texas. “I didn’t have a use for it. I was exempt over here, I wanted to be over here. I wish now I had taken a harder look at it because I’ve played some amazing courses and I’ve loved every minute of it.

” … At the end of the day, you look at what’s more convenient and where the money is (on the PGA Tour). But I love it on the European Tour. It’s been nothing short of fantastic.”

Beem started slowly on the European Tour, missing the cut in the Joburg Open in South Africa, the Andalucia Open in Spain and the Hassan Trophy in Morocco, before tying for 11th two weeks ago in the Sicilian Open.

After playing in the Spanish Open this week, he will play seven times over an eight-week span in England, Wales, Sweden, Germany, Ireland, France and Scotland.

• The PGA Tour’s CIMB Asia Pacific Classic in Malaysia, an unofficial event, was upstaged a bit last October by the Shanghai Masters, which offered a $5 million purse, with $2 million to the winner.

The Shanghai event had no attachment to any of the world tours but attracted a strong field, even pulling in Hunter Mahan and Jim Furyk from the PGA Tour. Rory McIlroy won it by turning back Anthony Kim in a playoff.

The two events will go head-to-head again this year on Oct. 25-28, but the tournament at Lake Malaren in Shanghai has become an official event on the European Tour and will be known as the BMW Masters.

“I’m already looking forward to tee off,” McIlroy said. “Thanks to the involvement of BMW, the tournament will now be one of the very best events in the world. That obviously makes it all the more exciting to defend my title there.”

The BMW Masters will offer a $7 million purse, giving it an advantage over the CIMB Asia Pacific Masters, which has a purse of $6.1 million. In addition, despite the PGA Tour’s involvement, the latter is not considered an official event.

Bo Van Pelt won by five strokes over Jeff Overton last year in Malaysia but was not credited with an official victory.

BMW now sponsors four tournaments on the two major tours — three on the European Tour and one on the PGA Tour.

• Se Ri Pak of South Korea, a member of the World Golf Hall of Fame, is out indefinitely after sustaining an injury to her left shoulder when she slipped on a staircase at the Crossings at Magnolia Grove Golf Club on the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail in Mobile, Ala.

Pak, who has won 32 times in her career, including five major titles, was diagnosed with a torn labrum and will miss at least two months.

“Right now, there is no timeline for my return to the LPGA, but I know the next two months of rehab will be important to my recovery,” the 34-year-old Pak said in a statement. “I have a positive outlook, and I fully expect to return to the LPGA as soon as the time is right.”

Pak is being treated by Dr. James Andrews, the Alabama-based orthopedic specialist known for his treatment of high-profile athletes, and she is hoping to avoid surgery and recover through rehabilitation.

Pak hopes to return for the U.S. Open in the first week of July at Blackwolf Run in Kohler, Wis., the site of her first major championship in 1998, which set off a golf boom in South Korea.

Course source

In the public eye: Pine Needles Lodge and Golf Club in Southern Pines, N.C.

The layout: Only a 10-minute drive from the famed Pinehurst Resort, Pine Needles — which hosted the 2007 U.S. Women’s Open won by Cristie Kerr — is a Donald Ross masterpiece in the Sandhills of North Carolina.

Although it is located at a resort, the course is open to the public.

The course was renovated in 2005 under the direction of Arizona-based designer John Fought to make it more closely resemble the course that opened in 1928. Tee boxes were lengthened, greens and bunkers were restored to their original sizes and positions, and native turf grasses were re-established.

Pine Needles, which plays to a par of 71, has been lengthened by about 300 yards to a total of 7,015 yards.

You can take a lesson from famed instructor Peggy Kirk Bell, whose family has been a presence at the resort for three generations. Bell now owns the resort. Also on the teaching staff is Donna Andrews, winner of six events on the LPGA Tour, including the 1994 Nabisco Dinah Shore.

General manager of golf: Graham Gilmore.

Local knowledge: Michael Campbell of New Zealand set up camp at the Pine Needles Lodge the week before the 2005 U.S. Open at Pinehurst with his Florida-based instructor Jonathan Yarwood, who refined Campbell’s chipping and putting strokes for the inverted saucer greens at Pinehurst.

After Campbell’s remarkable victory at Pinehurst on the No. 2 course, perhaps’ Ross’ most famous course, the winner returned to celebrate on Sunday night in the Rough Lounge at Pine Needles.

Pine Needles boasts an exceptional set of par 3s, three of them from elevated tees, so choosing the correct club is a must. The 145-yard third, the signature hole and shortest on the course, is the most picturesque, requiring a tee shot over a lake and wetlands area to a green that slopes dramatically from back to front.

The sixth hole, a 459-yard par 4, might be the best on the course. You hit your tee shot up to the fairway, and long hitters can catch the downslope to get an extra 30 yards of roll. The approach plays downhill to the green.

As part of the renovation, the 14th and 15th holes, perhaps the best on the back nine, have reverted to their original shot values. No. 14 is a daunting 454-yard par 4, followed by the 530-yard par-5 15th.

Other courses in the area: Pine Needles’ sister property next door, the Mid-Pines Inn, boasts another Ross classic, Mid-Pines Golf Club. Of course, a few miles down the road is Pinehurst Resort and Club, with eight courses, including the prized No. 2 course.

Also in the neighborhood are the Mid South Club in Pinehurst, designed by Arnold Palmer; Legacy Golf Club in Aberdeen, designed by Jack Nicklaus II and host of the 2000 Women’s U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship; National Golf Club in Pinehurst, designed by Jack Nicklaus; and Tobacco Road Golf Club in Sanford, an innovative course designed by Mike Strantz.

Others worth a look are the Pit Golf Links, Talamore Golf Club, Little River Farm and Pinewild Golf Club.

Where to stay: The Carolina Hotel is a National Historical Landmark in the center of Pinehurst that has been offering exquisite service to go with Southern charm since 1901.

Four U.S. presidents have stayed at the Holly Inn in Pinehurst, which opened its doors in 1895.

The Manor Inn has been one of Arnold Palmer’s favorite hangouts since he visited Pinehurst with his father as a boy.

In addition to Pine Needles Lodge and the Mid-Pines Inn, other quality accommodations may be found at Sandhills Golf Lodge in Pinebluff, Amble Inn Acres Bed and Breakfast in Vass, the Blacksmith Inn in Carthage, Hyland Hills Resort in Southern Pines and the Old Buggy Inn in Carthage.

On the web: http://www.pineneedles-midpines.com/.

The last resort: Pinehurst Resort and Country Club in Pinehurst, N.C.

The layout: There are eight championship courses at Pinehurst, one of the finest golf resorts in the world, four designed by architectural giant Donald Ross.

The others were designed by George and Tom Fazio, Reese Jones and Dan and Ellis Maples.

Pinehurst No. 2, of course, is Ross’ masterpiece — which has been recognized since its opening in 1907 as one of the most challenging layouts in the world. It plays to 7,252 yards from the tips, with a par of 72, and has a 75.9 USGA rating with a slope of 138.

No. 2 has been the site of more big-time championships than any course in the U.S. and was the host the 2005 U.S. Open, in which Michael Campbell of New Zealand held off Tiger Woods to win by two strokes.

The United States Golf Association will stage the U.S. Open and the U.S. Women’s Open at Pinehurst No. 2 on consecutive weeks in June in 2014, the first time a course will host national championships on consecutive weeks.

Director of golf: Chad Campbell (not the one who plays on the PGA Tour).

Local knowledge: The beauty of the No. 2 course belies the difficulty, with the subtlety of Ross’ design coming into view only after the golfer lands in the strategically-placed bunker or had his ball trickle off one of the crowned greens.

However, the course is playable for even the weekend golfer because the fairways are wide and forgiving.

Make your birdie or par on the easier third and fourth holes, because the diabolical fifth, a 483-yard par-4, and sixth, a 225-yard par-3, await with as punishing a one-two punch as golf can provide.

No. 14, at 471 yards to a green with trouble everywhere, is considered to be among the best two-shot holes in America.

Many a duffer has stood on the 18th green and tried to see if he could sink the same 15-foot putt the late Payne Stewart drained to beat Phil Mickelson and win the 1999 U.S. Open.

A statue of Stewart in his fist-pumping pose after sinking the putt overlooks the 18th green.

Ben Hogan won for the first time as a pro on No. 2, beating Sam Snead by three strokes in the 1940 North and South Championship.

Other courses in the area: If you don’t get enough golf at Pinehurst, there is plenty nearby in the Sandhills of North Carolina to keep even the golf-aholic busy all day, seven days a week.

Ross also designed gems at Pine Needles Lodge and Mid Pines Inn, both in neighboring Southern Pines.

Also in the neighborhood are the Mid South Club, designed by Arnold Palmer, in Pinehurst; Legacy Golf Club in Aberdeen, designed by Jack Nicklaus II and host of the 2000 Women’s U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship; National Golf Club in Pinehurst, designed by Jack Nicklaus, and Tobacco Road Golf Club in Sanford, an innovative course designed by Mike Strantz.

Others worth a look are the Pit Golf Links, Talamore Golf Club, Little River Farm and Pinewild Golf Club.

Where to stay: The Carolina Hotel is a National Historical Landmark in the center of Pinehurst that has been offering exquisite service to go with Southern charm since 1901.

Four presidents have stayed at the Holly Inn, which opened its doors in 1895. The Manor has been one of Arnold Palmer’s favorite vacation hangouts since he visited with his father as a boy.

Other quality accommodations may be found at Pine Needles Lodge in Southern Hills, Sandhills Golf Lodge in Pinebluff, Mid Pines Inn and Golf Club in Southern Pines, Amble Inn Acres Bed and Breakfast in Vass, the Blacksmith Inn in Carthage, Hyland Hills Resort in Southern Pines and the Old Buggy Inn in Carthage.

On the web: http://www.pinehurst.com/.

Golf Inside the ropes: Is Tiger back? They used to ask Jack, too is a post from: PhatzRadio.com

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