OK, and I'm not sure we are really arguing with each other on your other points. You voiced an objection to my initial comment, which was in response to an article titled "The Masters: Tiger's charge proves he's back, once and for all".
But according to what you just said, it sounds like you disagree with the title, just as I disagreed with the title and the author's viewpoint as expressed in the article.
I wasn't implying he isn't a great golfer. It's certainly an achievement to come in 4th in a prestigious tournament. But it hardly shows he is "back", and for the author to pretend it proves it shows how far Tiger has fallen, that a 4th-place finish is considered proof he is "back".
That is what I meant to say, and what I thought I said to start with.
But what bothered me most of this tournament was the lack of American contenders. Sorry, but I pull for the good ol’ USA when in competition with foreign players.
I can't say I follow golf enough to be "pulling" for players, although I do like to see the American players on top. It certainly isn't Tiger's fault that other Americans aren't doing better.
No Tiger isn’t ‘back’. I do think he showed vast improvement these past 4 days (day 2 & 4 especially) over the poor performances from last season. But he’s not the Tiger he was, and may never be. After all, he’s 35 years old. I’m not dwelling on Tiger, I’m dwelling on the American ‘field’ of golfers, and the state it’s in. Elsewhere, on another post, it was stated that in World standings Americans hold 4 of the top 10 positions, and 7 of the top 15. Golf, being as much an American sport as it is Scottish/Irish, we should be stronger than that; especially given the breath of field we have in our players (I specifically didn’t use ‘depth’ of field).
What I dislike is the notion that it takes a Tiger comeback to challenge the Europeans on our own turf. While I was elated to see him do so, even though he fell short, I was upset our field of contenders showed so miserably. He shouldn’t have been the highlight by himself. I wanted him to win, was rooting for him. But not because I’m a Tiger fan; because I wanted America to win the Masters. I’m an American, damn it. And I want us to win.