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Exhausted Tiger Woods to Skip Golf?s Tour Championships

Players and spectators alike were surprised to hear that Tiger Woods would be skipping the Tour Championships for the first time in his life. Woods cited mental and physical exhaustion as reasons to quit so early in the season. On his official website Tiger Woods stated, ?I am confident that this extended break will help me to recharge my batteries for the 2007 season?. Woods has been through an extremely emotional time since he buried his father, Earl Woods in May of this year.

This brings to three the number of top players who have bowed out of the Tour Championships ? an event that is meant to end the golfing season at East Lake this year. Tiger Woods? announcement comes on the heels of Phil Mickelson?s statement that he was done playing for the year. Stephen Ames was also forced to take early retirement from the season this year, following a back injury. Tour Championship organizers, referring to the 27 man field, stated that this would be the smallest field since the event was opened in 1987.

In a career-low, Tiger Woods played only 15 times this season. He took nine weeks off to cope with his father?s death and forfeited a chance to win the Vardon Trophy as he did not manage to play the required 60 rounds. Woods? decision to back out of the Tour Championships could not have come lightly: He has played at the championships every single year since 1996 and took the title in 1999. He was also runner up for the last two years at East Lake.