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CHARLOTTE, N.C.—Even though he didn't play in last year's Wachovia Championship, Tiger Woods was very much on the mind of his fellow touring pros.
"Without a doubt, there's a huge void when he's not here," Trevor Immelman said in April 2008. "The guy is probably going to go down as the greatest player of all time."
Fortunately for fans, and perhaps unfortunately for players, Woods is back in Charlotte for this year's tournament (now called the Quail Hollow Championship). Not surprisingly, he is the center of attention.
Woods played in Wednesday's pro-am with Indianapolis Colts quarterback Peyton Manning; the pairing earned them the largest gallery of any group in the exhibition.
The world's No. 1 player starts the real competition at 7:40 a.m. Thursday. Woods is playing his first tournament since he tied for sixth at the Masters three weeks ago. He says he has gotten past the frustration of falling short at Augusta, and he's ready to start preparing for June's U.S. Open.
"Probably took me a couple of days," Woods said. "Just wanted to go over what happened there and make sure I thought about what I did right and wrong and analyze it and prepare and start game-planning for the Open."
Woods won in Charlotte in 2007, but he couldn't return in 2008 because he was recovering from surgery to remove cartilage in his left knee—the same knee that required season-ending surgery after Woods' U.S. Open victory.
In Woods' absence, Anthony Kim took the champion's royal blue jacket with a 16-under 272. He finished five strokes ahead of runner-up Ben Curtis for his first PGA Tour win.
Woods does not feel like he is defending the 2007 title this year. "I'm not the champion; he is," Woods said of Kim. "He's just got all the talent in the world, and it's great to see him out here playing well and getting better."
Injuries and sickness have held back the 23-year-old Kim in 2009, but he hopes his return to Charlotte can get him back on track.
"I'm very excited to be back," he said. "It really is a nice get back and get my season started off on the right foot here because I have a six-week stretch coming up. So hopefully I can start playing some good golf and get back into it."
Kim noticed a lack of rough on the Quail Hollow layout this year compared with last year. "I'm guessing they want to see a lot of birdies and see a shootout," he said. "You've got the best players in the world, obviously Tiger being here and some of the other top-ranked players."
Ten of the top 14 players in the Official World Golf Ranking are in Charlotte this week, as is Angel Cabrera, competing for the first time since winning the green jacket. The six-year-old tournament consistently attracts a strong field because of its challenging course, enthusiastic fans and lucrative purse.
Speaking of purses, one thing the tournament lacks this year is a title sponsor. Wells Fargo, which bought Charlotte-based Wachovia last year, removed the Wachovia name from the event after increased public scrutiny of sports sponsorships by banks that accepted federal bailout money. The tournament is now named after the club where it is held.
The economy also seems to have hurt ticket sales. For the first time since its inception in 2003, the tournament did not sell out for all four rounds—tickets remained for Thursday at the close of sales Sunday.
"We got closer than most people thought," tournament director Kym Hougham told the Charlotte Business Journal.
According to the Journal, Houghman thinks Woods' presence could boost attendance, even if ticket sales are down.
"Nobody leaves tickets in the drawer when Woods plays," he said.
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