"Tour broadcasts feel the pain"

Thomas Bonk of the LA Times catches us up on how badly television ratings have been hit the last three weeks without Tiger...

It's all a matter of perspective. The PGA Tour and its truckload of sponsors aren't even asking you not to touch that dial on your television; they're asking you to make sure the set is turned on in the first place.

The Absent Tiger Factor is here and it's awful to behold.

Case 1: Buick Open. The first event of three events so far that Woods would have played but missed because of his knee surgery. The overnight rating on CBS for the fourth round was down 12%, from a 1.7 to a 1.5.

Case 2: AT&T National. Worse. The overnight ratings for the fourth round on CBS were down 48%, from a 2.9 to a 1.5. Third-round ratings dipped 35%, from a 2.0 to a 1.3.

Case 3: British Open. Not good. The overnight ratings for ABC's final round coverage Sunday fell 14.6%, from a 4.1 to a 3.5.