Put the stats in perspective.  Let’s start at his ability to just win golf matches.   He will pass the great Sam Snead for most career wins (82) sometime next year because Woods – who is only 37 – is sitting at 79 of them, besting Jack Nicklaus’ career total of 73.  The nearest active player is 43 year old Phil Mickleson with 41 tour victories!  “Okay Christopher, we  understand that Tiger has won a lot of matches but what does that have to do with the PGA putting the ‘kibosh” on him winning majors?”  Tiger Woods is 5 majors short of besting Jack Nicklaus’ record.  Ponder this:  Tiger Woods hasn’t won a major since 2008 (US Open) and that dry spell coincides with his marital infidelity scandal in 2009 where the PGA and Jack Nicklaus stood in silence.  I think a side deal has been made that in exchange for the silence of the PGA and the “Golden Bear,” Woods takes a 5 year hiatus on holding active pursuit of the Claret Jug, the Wanamaker Trophy and the Green Jacket.

Woods went through all of the sordid drama of a bad made for TV move and the Professional Golfers Association did not say a word against their cash-producing stud.  They never condemned him for his improprieties.   They never issued an organizational reprimand stating how the Association was tarnished because of Tiger’s salacious actions.  They never suspended him for conduct unbecoming of the PGA Tour professional.   Why not invoke a half year suspension?   They suspended golfer John Daly and all he did was pass out drunk while sitting outside a restaurant and hitting a golf ball off of a beer can!  Who hasn’t?   Daly was suspended for six months as a two-time major winner; surely the PGA would risk a little bit of dirt on its precious image to at least have an opinion about Tiger’s dalliances?

And that brings us to the real reason: MONEY!   The almighty dollar, coin, cabbage, taters, spy- stuff (I got those descriptors off of a Jimmy Fallon commercial.).  Tiger Woods is THE number one draw for the sport.  The man who pushes the financial dial is made of Teflon when it comes to the PGA speaking ill against him.  He pushes attendance in every tournament he appears.  He makes television networks money and so he is only asked a few softball questions by the media.  Most of the other players aren’t going to mumble out anything critical because his involvement in the game raises the purse for each tournament, thus making even his completion more money.

So there you have it. History, Prestige and Wealth.  Sounds like a bit of an old boys’ network if you ask me….

As is the custom with the Open, “super pairings” are sprinkled about the 156-man playing field to create buzz, keep spectator traffic under control, ease operational needs for televised coverage, and of course, to prove to golf fans just how very clever the USGA pairing committee really is.  Although lacking an American presence, the marquee grouping of  Luke Donald, Lee Westwood and Martin Kaymer offers Open-watchers the top three golfers in the world in a nice neat package.  The next best pairing -fortunately playing at a time when the Donald group is not – is Rory McIlroy, Dustin Johnson and Phil Mickelson, immediately followed by a pairing of three recent Master’s Champions: Charl Schwartzel, Trevor Immelman, and Zach Johnson.

Other pairings of note combine reigning U.S. Open winner Graeme McDowell, British Open Championship winner Louis Oosthuizen, and U.S. Amateur winner Peter Uihlein.  Then the pairing commitee decided to get cutesy.  There is the New Spanish Armada of Miguel Angel Jimenez, Sergio Garcia, and Alvaro Quiros;, followed by the Brothers Molinari and teen phenom, Matteo Manassero to round out  the Italian Stallions.  There is the all-Swede Abba fan club grouping of Henrik Stenson, Johan Edfors, and Fredrik Jacobson (it’s too bad the commitee did not group Karlsson, Noren and Hanson for a little $2 Nassau sidebet) as well as the USGA’s own makeshift version of the Asian Invasion with Ryo Ishikawa, Anthony Kim,  and Y.E. Yang.  In a most unusual pairing, even if Nicolas Colsaerts of Belgium can speak English, I am not sure he will understand many of the words coming out of the mouths of fellow pairing mates and good ol’ Georgia boys, Heath Slocum and Russell Henley – hopefully they won’t skin him.

As for early predictions, it’s easy to pick one of the favorites, but we think players from the Retief Goosen, David Toms and Steve Stricker group will be in the hunt on Sunday, along with members of the Matt Kuchar, Paul Casey, and K.J. Choi pairing.  The Bench Jockeys will be on-site for the entirety of the Open and with the volunteer schedule will be following the back-to-back pairings of Rickie Fowler, Ian Poulter, and Hunter Mahan & Camilo Villegas, Aaron Baddeley,  and Brandt Snedeker on Thursday as well as the Goosen/Mickelson groups on Friday.

To view the entire pairing list for the rounds on Thursday and Friday, click here.  http://www.golfweek.com/news/2011/jun/10/2011-us-open-usga-announces-pairings/