THE LATEST LINE: TIGER'S FEATS MAKE SCRIBE TAKE A DIFFERENT LOOK AT GOLF

I'm already into my 40s and the golf bug hasn't hit me yet, which no doubt makes me one of the few such males out there.

I've only played one round of golf in my life and that was a highly forgettable event in Oklahoma almost 20 years ago (well, it was forgettable as far as the ball striking was concerned, but the beverage part of things was plenty enjoyable. Isn't that how most rounds of golf work?).

When a professional tournament is on the tube, you generally won't find me tuned into the channel.

Now, let me explain that it's not like I despise golf or those who play it. Some of my best friends are avid golfers. Many of my co-workers golf regularly. I'm sure it's a fine sport.

It's just that, first of all, I didn't grow up around golf and was never exposed to it until fairly late in life. Second, I still love participating in sports where there is some running involved -- namely basketball and tennis -- and as long as my body holds up, I want to continue in those endeavors, which would leave me little time for the links.

And third, it's hard for me envisioning being able to afford what it costs to play golf on a small-town journalist's salary. It kind of makes me wonder if some of those aforementioned people I work with aren't robbing the company safe at night to support their golfing habits.

But maybe I'm about to be converted, because anywhere I've gone in the last week, I've been telling people that Tiger is the MAN.

This is not a totally new development. What little interest I've gained in following golf over the past few years stems from Tiger Woods, who has gotten more than a few casual fans to take notice of his sport.

I've always kind of followed the majors, especially the late stages of the final rounds. It's just that my interest in golf was limited to those few weeks of the year.

But Tiger is changing all that, much like Michael Jordan changed the casual basketball fan's interest in his sport. Whenever the striped one is playing, I'm interested in: 1) seeing if he'll win again; and 2) seeing just who might be good enough to beat him.

And last weekend, Tiger took my outlook on golf to a whole different level by winning his fourth straight major championship. I know little about golf, but I know enough to realize that's an unbelievable feat, probably one of the all-time great accomplishments in the history of sports.

But will Tiger's heroics move me enough to want to pick up the clubs on a regular basis?

Probably not. But what he has done will move me to pick up the remote and change the channel to golf more often than I do now.

As long as Tiger is playing that week, of course.

* Speaking of Michael Jordan, the sports world has been buzzing in recent days with all the talk of him possibly making a comeback.

Unless he knows for sure that he can return to the court the same way he left it -- as the best -- I hope he stays retired.

As a fan, I've always been saddened by some of the all-time greats in various sports who hung on way too long and were relegated to being nothing more than mediocre (at best) by the end of their careers.

I don't think that's the way we like to remember our sports heroes. I know I don't.

* The exact dates and times of Capaha baseball tryouts will be announced in the next couple of weeks.

~Marty Mishow is a sports writer for the Southeast Missourian.