Woods will stick around until the records go down

Some people prefer pain with their pleasure, which might be the solitary explanation for the existence of Cubs fans.

It's also, we assume, why some golf fanatics wandered over to a big screen a few hundred feet away from the 10th tee box Sunday at Cog Hill, and sat down to watch the Bears.

We stuck with Tiger Woods.

No pain there.

In fact, there was no breathless worry over Rex Grossman or Cedric Benson.

Not even any discussion of the two catchable balls Jacque Jones butchered in center field that cost the Cubs a game Sunday, or the Alex Cintron errors that sent Jon Garland into a tailspin.

As Don Zimmer used to say, just because a guy makes an error, does that mean the pitcher can't get the next guy out?

Digressions aside, there was none of it at Cog Hill, where it was merely the chance to watch the greatest golfer ever take his game to a new level.

Whereas on most courses Woods is fighting the course and playing defense with a lead, on this weekend he had to attack a giving surface and play offense against a stacked field that was also taking advantage of the chance to go low.

So Woods said, "OK, I'll play it your way,'' and came from behind on the back nine Sunday, fired ferociously and fearlessly at the sticks, and secured a hard-fought victory.

To see it in person, hole by hole, 36 in a row, is not to believe it.

The sad truth is now you won't be able to see Woods and the PGA Tour again in Chicago for two years, something about which Woods is also very unhappy, having won here six times and getting support like he's a born-and-bred Chicagoan.

And the fear is that by the time he returns, his skills will have begun to erode, either through age or the distractions of family life that have claimed many a great athlete.

Noting that 40-year-old Steve Stricker disappeared for a long time before finding his skills and love for the game again, Woods replied, "It doesn't really take much. You know, things off the golf course change, your life changes, it evolves, and all you need to do is have your game slip just a little and all of a sudden you're not able to practice.''

Tiger is 31. His pal Michael Jordan was just short of 31 when he retired the first time, but never was he better than at age 33 and 34 when he won his fourth and fifth titles with the Bulls.

I had a chance to briefly discuss this notion with Tiger Saturday, and could tell by his wide-eyed smile that he really likes being a dad. No, not a pretend dad, but a real one, just like the one he had.

However, comma, you can also be certain of this: Nothing, not even fatherhood, is going to keep Woods from his appointed task, which is passing all-time majors leader Jack Nicklaus (18), and all-time wins leader Sam Snead (82).

Simply put, he is possessed with winning and thirsts for, as he puts it, more Ws.

"Winning,'' he said, "takes care of everything.''

Still, it is depressing at best and disconcerting at worst to think that we've seen Woods reach the clubhouse turn of his career.

It's both fair and reasonable to consider that possibility, especially when Woods acknowledges that his life off the practice green is changing at light speed, and his once astounding ability to completely control his environment is not as it was a few years ago.

But watching him this weekend, you are convinced he's never been better, and you can expect him to play at this level for several more years.

He's winning at a 28 percent clip for his career (60 of 215), but that number includes a 1-for-19 in 2004 when he went through a swing change.

Since then, Woods has won 39 percent of his starts (20-for-51). He's also at 40 percent this season (6-for-15) and has won three of his last four, with the lone dissenter being a second-place finish.

Furthermore, since the 2006 British Open, Woods has taken 12 of 21 events, a 57 percent pace.

Scary.

More than a year ago, we predicted that Woods could pass Nicklaus in the British Open at St. Andrews in 2010.

That's now become a common forecast, but having gone 1-for-4 in 2007, he'd need to win half the 10 majors between now and then to tie Nicklaus going into that Open Championship.

That sounds like a tall order, unless you were fortunate enough to watch him closely this weekend.

The way he's currently striking the ball, we suggest you not be the one to tell Tiger Woods there's something he cannot do.