GAP HITTER

It’s probably going to be a little different when Tiger Woods shops for Christmas gifts this year, with his 5 1/2 -month-old daughter Sam to keep in mind, but there’s no reason to think that Woods’ 2008 golf season is going to vary much.

Crunch the numbers. Woods won seven times on the PGA Tour in 2007, including his 13th major at the PGA Championship at Southern Hills in Oklahoma, made a career-high $10.87 million, won the first FedEx Cup and its $10-million bonus, tied his record for lowest adjusted scoring average at 67.79 and won the player-of-the-year award for the ninth time in 11 years.

“One thing is for certain, he’s the constant,” said Jim Furyk.

Woods closes out his 2007 season with the 16-player, $5.75-million Target World Challenge, which begins today at Sherwood Country Club in Thousand Oaks.

And while Woods is left with an extended vacation that probably won’t end until he shows up at Torrey Pines for the Buick Invitational in late January, everyone else is still calculating the distance between themselves and Woods.

It could be helpful to use a telescope. We know that Woods is solidly entrenched in the No. 1 spot in the rankings, but the gap between him and his pursuers deserves a closer look.

In the last two years, Woods has won 16 times worldwide. That’s the same number as the next five players in the world rankings -- Phil Mickelson, Furyk, Steve Stricker, Ernie Els and Justin Rose -- added together.

Furyk says no one seems capable of catching Woods.

“Phil made a good run, so did Ernie and Vijay [Singh], and there have been times when the gap has narrowed, but I’m not sure Tiger’s sweating,” he said.

If Woods’ career has been marked by overwhelming success, it has also been a picture of numbing consistency.

Since he turned pro in 1996, Woods has had only eight rounds of more than five-over par.

The Official World Golf Ranking is a system based on points awarded for performances over a two-year span. Woods has been at the top for 473 weeks. He will begin 2008 with a total of 20.79 points, 11.59 ahead of No. 2 Mickelson.

If that seems to be a lot, it’s not even close to Woods’ biggest advantage.

At the end of 2000, which was Woods’ career year, he had 29.40 points and led Els by 17.75 points.

Stricker, whose current No. 4 ranking is the best of his career, said he doesn’t consider himself an elite player, certainly not close to Woods.

As for the gap between Woods and everyone else, Stricker said it has remained unchanged.

“I don’t think it’s getting closer, no,” Stricker said. “Just playing with him toward the end of the season and watching what he does and what he’s capable of doing kind of just blows me away at times.”

Make no mistake, Woods knows exactly what his numbers are, and he sees his hold on the No. 1 ranking as a byproduct of simply being successful at the right time. Woods played his best in some of the biggest tournaments, besides the PGA Championship.

He also won the Tour Championship, two World Golf Championship events at the CA Championship and the Bridgestone Invitational, in addition to his ties for second at the Masters and the U.S. Open.

“If you watch the world rankings, it’s basically who goes on such and such a run, [and] wins certainly accrue world ranking points, especially when they are at the right events,” Woods said.

“If no one is able to keep pace, I’m going to obviously increase the gap.

“Winning takes care of everything, basically. The more wins you have, you don’t have to worry about the world rankings.”

Up to now, Woods’ 2000 season is the yardstick by which to compare his greatest years.

That year, he won three of the four majors and nine other times worldwide, and he did it convincingly. Woods won the U.S. Open by 15 shots and the British Open by eight.

As good as 2000 certainly was, 2007 came close to matching it, at least in his level of play, Woods said. “Very close,” he said. “There’s no doubt, right up there.”

Meanwhile, the gap between Woods and every other player is as visible as ever.

“It’s quite wide, really,” said Colin Montgomerie. “I think the chasing pack are getting better. I think the chasing pack have learned that Tiger is not sort of invincible, if you like, but the trouble is they’re getting better but the problem is, so is he.

“I always feel his best time was in 2000 when he [nearly] held all four majors at the one time, and I think he’s getting back to that level again. Who’s to say that 2008 won’t be the time that he does all four, you know?”

George Lopez, who is the host of the $5.1-million Bob Hope Chrysler Classic, said there were several reasons to see next January’s tournament, in addition to the new course in the rotation -- SilverRock Resort.

“There are more golf courses than anywhere in the world,” he said. “Maybe Dubai will catch up in five years. They’ve got great places to eat, they’ve got a great history and if you like cosmetic surgery, you’re in the right place. If you want to see what Botox looks like, come down to the desert.”

Promoting safe driving over the holidays, Furyk was in New York last week in conjunction with sponsor Johnnie Walker, and hopped in taxicabs three times with riders to publicize the program.

Furyk said he was pleased about the stringent PGA Tour’s next anti-doping plan that should be in place by the middle of next year.

“If you’re going to do it, make it strong. It’s smart to adopt a good program so no one thinks we’re just standing by,” he said. “I don’t think any of us out there who think there’s an issue, maybe a rumor of a guy or two, but not 25 guys. But why not be proactive?”

Golf members at Sherwood Country Club are hosting the Target World Challenge for the first time, after buying out club developer David Murdock for $14 million in July. Peter Wagner, the new president at Sherwood and the owner of a motorcycle dealership in Thousand Oaks, said members planned to take over the club at the end of 2009, but acted early.

“What we’ve done here is almost a miracle,” said Wagner, who said a recent membership drive added about 100 new members at a discounted initiation fee of $160,000. The previous fee had been $300,000.

The sum Murdock received was from unsold memberships and Murdock remains a real estate developer selling homes at the country club that begin at $3.5 million. But the 350 golf members are the new owners.

thomas.bonk@latimes.com

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(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX)

Today’s pairings

Pairings for the Target World Challenge at Sherwood Country Club in Thousand Oaks. The $5.75-million, 16-player event ($1.35 million to the winner) features World No. 1 Tiger Woods as the tournament’s host and defending champion.

*--* Time Player Hometown 9:50 a.m. Fred Couples La Quinta -- Brett Wetterich Jupiter, Fla. 10 a.m. Vijay Singh Fiji Islands -- Padraig Harrington Dublin, Ireland 10:10 a.m. Luke Donald High Wycombe, England -- Zach Johnson Cedar Rapids, Iowa 10:20 a.m. Jim Furyk Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla. -- Mark Calcavecchia Palm Beach Gardens, Fla. 10:30 a.m. Tiger Woods Windermere, Fla. -- Steve Stricker Madison, Wis. 10:40 a.m. Lee Westwood Worksop, England -- Colin Montgomerie Troon, Scotland 10:50 a.m. Niclas Fasth Lysegarden, Sweden -- Paul Casey Surrey, England 11 a.m. Henrik Stenson Gothenburg, Sweden -- Rory Sabbatini Southlake, Texas *--*