A GRIP ON SPORTS • Are we seeing the end of an era in golf? Is it true Tiger Woods will never play again? Or is a miracle comeback on the way? Read on.

••••••••••

• For seemingly forever, Tiger Woods was the most mesmerizing presence in the golf world. The most mesmerizing since Arnold Palmer some 60 years ago. Not only was he among the game's best on the course, he was also among the world's most recognizable off it. His name was enough to sell equipment, cars and ESPN to everyone. But his time in the spotlight is coming to an end, done in by questionable life choices and debilitating injuries. It's a matter of when, now, not if. And that's what is so interesting. Watching video clips of Tiger Woods swing a club, it is obvious he isn't going to play anytime soon. He can't torque his body enough to develop any clubhead speed. He's not only not special right now, he's not even just another guy. That would be an improvement. And until he can show that improvement, he'll continue to withdraw from tournaments. He did that yesterday, telling the world he wouldn't be playing in the PGA Championship, the year's final major. He's missed them all in 2016 and hasn't played competitively in a year. But he keeps holding out hope. Why? It's about the money. Woods has millions of dollars coming in from endorsement deals. As long as he still is a professional golfer, even an injury-forced inactive one, the money keeps coming in. If he retires, it stops. We're not talking minimum wage here. Maybe he isn't making what he once did, when he was the unquestioned king of endorsements, but he's still raking in more per day than most of make in a year. Or decade. So Tiger Woods continues to make occasional appearances, swinging a club just to show he's working at getting back. Then, once every couple months, he makes an announcement he's not healthy enough to compete – yet. He withdraws from a tournament and says he's hoping to play the next major. He soldiers on. And, like Douglas MacArthur's old soldier, he just fades away.

•••

• WSU: Another day, another 2017 commitment. Monday's came from the Hawaiian Islands and is considered Hawaii's top safety. Jacob Thorpe has more in this blog post.

• Gonzaga: The Big 12 has reversed course again and is thinking about expanding in the not-so-distant future. One of the candidates? BYU, which would pull all its non-football teams from the WCC if it happens.

• EWU: The Big Sky preseason media and coaches polls were released yesterday and neither picked Eastern to win the conference. 

• Indians: Spokane couldn't muster a run last night and lost 1-0 to Vancouver. Josh Horton has the game story. ... Josh is also spending some time this summer on ranking the Indians' prospects. He has this blog post on the top 10. ... Speaking of prospects, the M's top young one, Kyle Lewis (pictured), was injured last night in Everett's 8-6 loss to Tri-City. ... Eugene wasted its first chance to clinch the South's first-half title.

• Empire: Sioux Falls' offensive line will be tough for Spokane to penetrate. Jim Meehan has more in this story as we get closer to Saturday's IFL championship game.

• Golf: The Showcase, a celebrity-filled cancer fundraiser, will hold its third edition next week at the Coeur d'Alene Resort Golf Course. Jim has an advance.

• Mariners: One evening after thrilling everyone with a remarkable come-from-behind ninth-inning victory, the M's went meekly into the good night. The bullpen bent and broke in a 6-1 loss to the White Sox. ... Ketel Marte has been battling injury and illness recently. ... The past always seems better than the present for the M's, and no more so than now as Ken Griffey Jr. prepares to enter the Hall of Fame. Ichiro will join him there someday. ... The M's have to figure out their starting rotation for the next couple weeks.

• Seahawks: Doug Baldiwn is unquestionably the leader of the Hawks' receiving corps.

• Sounders: The Sounders' season has been so lackluster you might think they would concentrate on winning the U.S. Open Cup. You would be wrong.

•••

• Funny, Tiger and Junior are pretty much peers. One has been retired for a long time and is about to enter his sports hall of fame. The other continues to try to play. Until later ...

---

---