Woods’ World Not Same Either

Tiger Woods was the featured speaker and Michael Jordan eventually became the topic of conversation. And yet the underlying theme was vulnerability.

You would think Woods had nothing to fear on the golf course--certainly not a 600-yard hole with a dogleg left. But in these terror-stricken times, the safety of one of the world’s most recognizable athletes is a question.

It was the first one asked of him at a news conference Monday at Sherwood Country Club in Thousand Oaks, which will host the Williams World Challenge in December.

As much as we hope sports can relieve our minds of the fear of more terrorist attacks, it’s clear there is no total escape. Just as every louder-than-usual roar of a jet engine can grab your attention, every conversation eventually gets back in some way to Sept. 11.

Woods has not played in a tournament since the Canadian Open, which ended the Sunday before the attacks. The American Express championship, scheduled for the first weekend after them, was canceled. Woods stayed home rather than play a tournament in France the next week. Then the Ryder Cup, scheduled to start Sept. 28, was postponed until Sept. 27-29, 2002.

In his first mass media availability, Woods was asked if it would be a little different when he returned to action in the National Car Rental tournament at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Fla., next week.

“I don’t think so,” said Woods, who plans to play in the World Cup with David Duval despite the U.S.-led airstrikes in Afghanistan. “It’s been five weeks since I’ve played. A lot has transpired since then, but I know the people there at Disney are going to do a wonderful job. Sporting events, obviously, are tightened down now.

“Our sport’s a little bit different. Obviously there’s more accessibility to the players, which is more of a concern. The PGA Tour staff and their security programs that they have implemented already have done a wonderful job of protecting us.”

Fred Couples said he has a plainclothes security man following him, and he definitely understands the need for Woods to have extra security.

“We’re high-profile, some of us, but he’s very high profile,” Couples said. “But I don’t think it’s anything [that] when he’s playing a round of golf, he’s got second thoughts of something happening. I just don’t see that.”

When you can pull yourself away from newscasts long enough, it’s hard to talk about anything related to sports without mentioning Jordan.

Since Woods is tight with Jordan, that name is even more likely to come up.

It’s interesting now to hear friends express concern about Jordan’s ability to simply last the entire NBA season. Jordan’s trainer had doubts a month before the NBA legend announced his comeback.

Jordan and Woods (who didn’t even come close to winning the U.S. Open, British Open and the PGA Championship) have spent more time discussing their limitations this year than at any other point in their careers.

The question facing Woods, however, is, “Why aren’t you dominating?” The question to Jordan isn’t merely, “Can you dominate?” It’s also, “Can you keep playing at 38?”

Although Woods said, “I’m excited for [Jordan],” he also said, “I hope he doesn’t get hurt. Playing 82 games, Jordan is not as young as he was. This game is pretty physical. It’s not an easy game on the body. Eighty-two games is a lot of games. I hope that he stays healthy. I know he still can contribute, he still can do some marvelous things.”

Woods also knows something about setting impossibly high standards.

He’s the only golfer in the world for whom two consecutive tournaments without a victory is considered a slump.

“[Jordan] goes out and averages 23, 25, that’s still a great year,” Woods said. “But the press could just bash him for not being as good as he was.

“Most guys if they average 23 points a game, that’s still a great season.

“This year, for me, I’ve won six times around the world [including the Masters]. Last year [winning three majors and nine tournaments overall] was probably one of the best years you could ever dream of. I actually had a chance to live it. Last year was a great year and a year that I hope I could get back to and play that way and get the lucky breaks I need to get in order to have that happen.

“But this year has been a great year itself. I’ve learned a lot, I’ve been pretty successful this year. Could I have been more successful? Yes. Could I have gone the other way? Yes. But I feel like I’ve learned and I’ve grown as a player and a person.

“I know Michael’s going to have to deal with a lot of the same criticisms that I got this year. I hope he doesn’t get caught up and I hope he stays focused on what he wants to accomplish, and that is to have fun.”

Woods has been trying to have fun away from golf.

He said he has played only one round during his time off. He has tried to relax and get re-energized. But, like Jordan, he said he hasn’t lost his love for the game.

“Golf has been in the same spot it’s always been,” Woods said. “It’s No. 2 on my priorities. I think it’ll always be there--No. 1 being my family. So golf has never changed spots. It’s what I’ve always wanted to do, and I’ve been lucky enough to be able to do it.

“As far as my excitement level, that hasn’t changed. That’s one of the reasons I don’t play so much.... I take a lot of breaks, which means when I do come back, I’m ready to play. I’m excited and energized and ready to go.”

So he’ll go back to work, just like the rest of us.

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J.A. Adande can be reached at: j.a.adande@latimes.com.