Game's young guns stepped it up in Woods' absence

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Camilo Villegas, 26, nearly won the PGA TOUR Playoffs for the FedExCup with two consecutive victories.

Losing Tiger Woods to a knee injury might turn out to be the best thing to happen to the PGA TOUR.

To no one's surprise, television ratings, attendance and interest among the casual fans have been impacted since Woods underwent reconstructive surgery after his courageous performance in winning the U.S. Open more than three months ago.

But just as a golfer who undergoes a massive swing change knows his game will get worse before it gets better, the PGA TOUR will someday look back on Woods' absence as a blessing in disguise.

Because, believe it or not, this sport is bigger than one person, as Hal Sutton so famously opined at a not-so-distant PLAYERS Championship.

Sunday's final round of THE TOUR Championship presented by Coca-Cola served as the perfect illustration of how the sport has benefited from the loss of Woods. Golf fans were treated to a four-man, back-nine battle royale between three of the game's brightest young stars -- winner Camilo Villegas (26), playoff loser Sergio Garcia (28) and Anthony Kim (23) -- as well as the ever-popular Phil Mickelson (38).

Last year? Woods waltzed to an eight-shot runaway at East Lake that seemed to be decided as soon as he made his final-round tee time. Sunday, it wasn't until Garcia's par chip stopped short of the cup on the first playoff hole that Villegas was assured his second consecutive win -- after watching all four players have putts on the 72nd hole either to win the $1.26 million first prize or to make the playoff.

Instead of watching Woods' Sunday stroll of a year ago, we got to see these four exciting players each take a turn leading on the back nine. Sure, the FedExCup had already been won by Vijay Singh, but who could ignore the classic golf being played this day?

One of the few downsides of the Tiger Era is his brilliance is so bright, it tends to overshadow so many other talented players. Who knew, for instance, that Villegas was that great a putter, or Kim was that much of a leader at the recent Ryder Cup?

It also gave Garcia a chance to show he's maturing. Despite losing a second playoff in five weeks (he also came up short to Singh in overtime at The Barclays), he didn't blame the golfing Gods this time, as he did after losing last year's British Open playoff to Padraig Harrington.

"I just didn't play well enough," Garcia said.

That's growth and that's progress, and that's good news for a PGA TOUR that has been looking for someone to challenge Woods.

With Woods gone, it's easier to see the changing landscape on the PGA TOUR. A year ago, Kim had yet to win. Now he's won twice, already has enjoyed the role of Ryder Cup hero and is being called the next Tiger.

A month ago, Villegas had yet to win on the PGA TOUR, though he had come close several times. All the fans knew of his muscles and Spiderman technique in reading putts. But who knew he had been transformed into Ben Crenshaw on the greens?

Even a veteran like Mickelson will benefit from one last day in contention, something to whet his competitive appetite as he takes a four-month break from the sport. It had been, after all, almost four months since Mickelson challenged for a victory.

Beyond the fans getting a closer view of this new boatload of talent, having no Woods in the picture also helped these players gain the confidence to stage these clutch performances. First, it was Singh who convinced himself he was a great putter -- and he won his next two tournaments. Then Villegas did the same -- and HE won his next two tournaments.

It's easier to do this kind of convincing when the world's greatest putter is not playing.

World Golf Hall of Famer Nick Price made a good point recently when he was asked why journeymen such as Bob May and Rocco Mediate tend to do a better job of facing up to Woods than the world's highest ranked players.

"They have nothing to lose, because nobody expects these guys to beat Tiger," Price said. "It's not as easy for the top guys because Woods has been beating them for so long, it's like they have scar tissue. You get tired of watching a guy inflict more pain on you."

Without Woods around, Singh and Villegas have refined the art of winning, and Garcia has lost his penchant for whining. That will help each of these players when Woods returns next year.

That's a good thing for all involved.

Craig Dolch is a columnist for PGATOUR.COM. His views do not necessarily reflect the views of the PGA TOUR.