In a recent phone interview with the Montreal Gazette, six-time major champ Sir Nick Faldo said, in no uncertain terms, that Tiger's chance of breaking Jack Nicklaus' record of 18 professional majors has gone by the wayside.

"I do personally believe that, I was one of the few guys that said it right after this all happened and he was trying to get back to the Masters last year.

According to Faldo, El Tigre is still suffering from the mental strain of his well-publicized divorce and sex scandal, as illustrated by both his failure to play well and his inability to regain his physical health. The prevalence of cell phones, texts, and social media, says Faldo, are also making it difficult for Tiger to concentrate the way he once did. 

"Mentally, he's actually a pretty sensitive guy. He's very sensitive to any comments or criticisms that we have. It's just about global communication. Something like that, trying to deal with that, I thought it was going to really affect him. Plus, there's probably a lot going on in his life that we don't know about. It's just having that peace of mind. There's nothing nicer for a golfer to go to the golf course all day long and you do what you want to do, practice-play or play-practice, and then you look at your watch and say, 'I'm going home - it's 6 p.m.' "Now, I know what it's like. The phone's always going; people are texting, emailing. I can't concentrate like that. That's the first thing I thought: 'His concentration will be shattered.' He had this amazing ability to go away from a tournament and then go on and practice as close to tournament-mode as anybody could do or better than anybody else could do. Now, I think that's been shattered. I can't imagine what it's like. The phone is ringing off the hook and there are all sorts of things to talk about.

Though Faldo sympathizes with Tiger's dilemma, as the details of his personal life were often fodder for the London tabloids, his view of the former No. 1's future isn't exactly bright.

The stress injuries to your body are also related to that. When you're under stress, physically you will break down somewhere, whether it's a physical thing or emotional thing. All of this (is) linked. It's now two seasons. It's not like it's been two months. Two seasons of golf have gone by. He hasn't been in a comfortable mode for two years. Even when he comes back for the President's Cup, he won't be comfortable because he'll be under the questions and spotlight - should he be there or shouldn't he be there?"

Tour signs new TV deal with CBS, NBC

With current agreements coming to an end in 2012, the PGA Tour signed nine-year extensions with both CBS and NBC to go along with The Golf Channel's current 15-year agreement. The contracts allow CBS to continue to broadcast 20 events per year, including those occurring on the West Coast Swing. Other notable tournaments for CBS include The WBC-Bridgestone Invitational, the Wyndham Championship, The Barclays, The Masters, and the PGA Championship.

NBC will continue to air 10 events annually, including the Accenture Match Play Championship, Cadillac Championship, and The Players, as well as the final three FedEx Cup playoff events (Deutsche Bank, BMW, and Tour Championship). NBC will also continue to broadcast the President's Cup every other year.

The Tour's new agreements will also significantly expand coverage on digital platforms, including simulcasts on PGATour.com, CBSSports.com, NBCSports.com, and GolfChannel.com. Digital coverage will also extend to mobile devices and tablets.

Bubba comes up short at Deutsche Bank

Anyone who watched the golf on Sunday probably thought Bubba Watson was a strong pick to win, as he dominated the TPC Boston with his signature giant fades, hooks, and bombs off the tee. Unfortunately for Bubba, who entered the final round on Monday with a one-stroke lead, he admittedly didn't have his best stuff for the closing 18 as he made seven bogeys en route to a 74 and tie for 16th. 

“You know what? It was tough. I didn’t have my best stuff today. I felt good, I felt great, I just didn’t have it. It was one of those things where I had it at the beginning of the week, but I didn’t have it today. I ended on a good note, I made that one on the last hole. It’s golf, It’s a tough game. Four days straight of playing great golf is hard to do. We knew that somebody was going to come out of the pack or some people were going to start off really hot. I birdied the second hole but I just didn’t have anything after that. I just didn’t have it.’’

Tweet of the Day

Rory McIlroy returns to action this week in Switzerland at the Omega European Masters for the first time since injuring his wrist on a tree root at the PGA Championship. In a message to fans on his website, McIlroy said that he was “stupid” to play the shot that caused the injury, and that he is still experiencing some pain in his elbow from the incident.

Looking back on it now it was a stupid shot to play on the 3rd, at the time I thought I could get away with it, but obviously I didn't and it put paid to my chances of a second major this year. It was a disappointing way to finish the major season but I was proud of myself to have made the cut and to complete four rounds -- I think it was a sense of pride and I really didn't want to pull out of the event. Even though it was hurting a lot I just wanted to finish the tournament just for a bit of self-satisfaction -- so at least I accomplished one goal that week.

McIlroy said the wrist has healed, but that he’s still dealing with pain in his elbow.

Now, the wrist is totally fine but when I've been practising I've experienced a little bit of soreness on the outside of the elbow. I practised three times last week and after maybe an hour it started to get a bit sore but I can definitely play. I think when I injured the wrist in the USPGA I started to compensate with my elbow and shoulder so that's where it has come from.

Despite the injury, McIlroy said he plans to play the next two weeks. After Switzerland, he’ll play the KLM Open in the Netherlands, and he has a goal in mind.

...I'll have a chance to improve my world ranking position which has gone down to 6th after the USPGA. I think if I win next week I can get back up to 3rd so that's a nice little goal for me, and also I'd like to get a little bit closer to the top two.

Arnold Palmer steals show (as usual) at Oregon tournament
The Frys.com Open might have landed Tiger, but Peter Jacobsen made an even bigger score for his inaugural Umpqua Bank Challenge in Portland, Ore.: Arnold Palmer. Mike Tokito of The Oregonian has the details.

The field's oldest player, Arnold Palmer, was warmly welcomed back to Portland, where he last played in the 2002 Fred Meyer Challenge. On Monday, Palmer and partner Peter Jacobsen finished at 1 under, but it didn't matter to the large gallery that followed them. The love for the 81-year-old legend started at the morning clinic, where he received two standing ovations, and continued until he and Jacobsen approached the 18th green.

A marshal, breaking protocol, watched the grandstands as Palmer was showered with a rousing ovation but wasn't satisfied, so he started raising his arms and yelling at the fans, "Stand up you guys! C'mon! Get up off your butts!"

They did.

TPC Boston cleans up Irene damage for Deutsche Bank tournament
The TPC Boston course didn’t escape Tropical Storm Irene unscathed, but it will be ready to host the PGA Tour at this week’s Deutsche Bank Championship, according to Matt Kakley of The Attleboro Sun Chronicle.

Tropical Storm Irene knocked down about 75 trees around the course, but none hit any greens, tee boxes or fairways, according to tournament director Eric Baldwin.

"We didn't have any damage to the actual golf course," he said.

There are tens of thousand of trees on the property of Mansfield Avenue, so the number is relatively minor, Baldwin said.

There was some minor damage to some tents, but they were being repaired Monday, he said. While chainsaws and wood chippers could be heard around the course, the real work was putting up signs and tents around the course that had been taken down in advance of the storm.

Stray Shots: Things we saw while wondering where the summer went...

Tiger Woods passed golf's former Twitter king Ian Poulter in number of followers, if you’re keeping score at home (and we hope you’re not).

These Nike Dunk golf shoes look pretty slick. (Via Today’s Golfer UK)

Tweet of the Day

Sure, Tiger Woods still wants to win the Deutsche Bank Championship this week, but to stay alive in the FedEx Cup playoffs he needs to finish at least T54, according to The Orlando Sentinel.

Woods currently ranks 65th in the standings with 734 points. A year ago, Chad Campbell was the last man into the BMW Championship with 816 points.

That means Woods needs to pick up at least 82 points at the TPC Boston -- equivalent to a tie for 54th. A top-50 finish likely guarantees safe passage.

Remember, though, these are projections for a moving target. If enough players below Woods get hot this week, that target number could rise.

Woods did win over the Las Vegas sportsbooks with his T12 finish at the Barclays, his first top-20 since the U.S. Open. He’s now listed at the favorite at TPC Boston this week, according to SportsUntapped.com.

If the odds for this weekend’s Deutsche Bank Championship, the second round of the FedExCup playoffs, are any indication, Vegas is regaining its faith in Tiger Woods. Tiger’s the 7/1 favorite to win the tournament. In a bit of a surprise, the next-best bet is no longer world number two Phil Mickelson (16/1), but Steve Stricker at 11/1. Stricker is ranked fourth in the world, and second in the FedExCup standings.

Meet the New Phil
Young, talented, good-looking player with hard-luck losses in majors becomes a fan favorite. Yup, Dustin Johnson reminds The Newark Star-Ledger’s Steve Politi of someone.

...golf fans love the snake-bitten loser, especially one who handles defeat with dignity and grace as Johnson has. The frustrating near-misses in majors made Phil Mickelson a bigger star than he’d ever be had he gone out and won a U.S. Open in his early 20s.

Johnson plays right-handed, but in many ways, he has become Lefty Light. He started the day in the final pairing, and with Woods an afterthought and Mickelson missing the cut, D.J. became the crowd favorite.

“It was a Phil and Tiger feeling out there, with people four deep along the ropes,” said Blake Smith, one of his agents. “It’s amazing how much people have embraced him.”

Stray Shots
Stories we saw while wondering why after 14 holes our golf cart looks like Starsky and Hutch have been on an all-night stakeout in it...

A golfer in Southern California started a 12-acre blaze when his shot from the rough hit a rock, which caused a spark, which ignited the rough. (Story -- delivered with unnecessary snark -- from the OC Weekly blog.)

You’ll never believe this, but The Desert Sun is reporting that Michelle Wie’s win at CN Canadian Open was beneficial to the LPGA.

If you’re wondering why in the world Roger Clemens played in the Golf.com World Amateur Championship in South Carolina after being arraigned on charges of lying to Congress in Washington, D.C., his wife Debbie said, "[The tournament] was planned before the other thing happened." Yup, the Rocket must love Golf.com. (Via The Sun News)

And, finally, Tiger Woods is NOT buying an apartment in New York City, despite rampant reports, according to CNBC's Darren Rovell. Why would Tiger need a place in the city when he can always crash at his pal Derek Jeter's place?

Tiger Woods is currently 111th in FedEx Cup points, which isn't good enough to make the 100-player field at the Deutsche Bank Championship, the second FedEx Cup playoff event. The tournament, held at the TPC Boston on Labor Day weekend since 2003, has enjoyed a close relationship with Woods over the years and contributes to Woods's charitable foundation.  Emily Kay of Examiner.com explains that the star of the show may be missing for what has become a Labor Day tradition:

The Deutsche Bank Championship and Tiger Woods’ appearance at the tourney that benefits his charitable foundation have been staples of Boston's Labor Day weekend golf scene since 2003, but that run could be in jeopardy after this year.

Woods, who has played in each DB Championship except 2008, when he was recovering from knee surgery, will have to pick up his game if he hopes to tee it up at TPC Boston in September. The event is the second of four FedEx Cup playoffs, and Woods was ranked 111th in FedEx Cup points, not good enough to make the 100-player field.

Deutsche Bank's original sponsorship agreement was for four years, which has since been renewed with an option for two more years. However, according to Kay, Seth Waugh, chief executive of Deutsche Bank Americas, said that while the bank would like to continue sponsoring the tournament, nothing is definite as of now. 

"If it comes down to jobs at the bank or us sponsoring the golf tournament, it's not a fair fight," Waugh said. “[In this economy], you can’t take anything for granted anymore.”

Editors' Note: An earlier version of this post said that Woods was in danger of missing the playoffs altogether. As of Aug. 3, he would make the 125-man field for the first playoff event, the Barclays at Ridgewood Country Club in Paramus, N.J., which starts August 26.

Greenbrier Classic is success for iconic resort

The recent Greenbrier Classic wasn't just great for Stuart Appleby's bank account and his world ranking, it was a major stepping-stone for West Virginia's iconic Greenbrier resort as well. Bought out of bankruptcy just last year by local millionaire Jim Justice, the Greenbrier, originally opened in 1858, got high marks from players and fans alike. Once the site of Ryder Cups and major championships, the West Virginia resort had lost some of its luster in recent years, but Justice is determined to return the Greenbrier to its former glory. 

Over the last year, the resort added an underground casino (costing a reported $80 million), upscale retail stores and celebrity chefs. Justice, who grew up playing golf at the resort, arranged tournament performances by Reba McEntire and Carrie Underwood, and offered $250,000 to any PGA Tour player who made a hole-in-one on par-3 18th hole, plus $100 to every spectator in the stands who witnessed it. His six-year agreement with the PGA Tour ensures that the tournament and The Greenbrier will continue to grow together for quite some time. That's good news all around.

R.I.P. Caddyshack's Dr. Beeper

Actor Dan Resin, who played Dr. Beeper in Caddyshack, died this weekend from Parkinson's complications. Resin, who was 79, also appeared in such films as Wise Guys, The Sunshine Boys and The Man With One Red Shoe. He was also known for his Ty-D-Bol commercials in the early 1970s. 

What are you doing next Labor Day? If you'd like an end-of-summer golf sojourn in New England, you always can enter the Deutsche Bank Championship -- as a volunteer.

According to tournament organizers, the Deutsche Bank has 1,725 volunteers this year. They come from 20 states and range in age from 10 to 90. There are 183 families who volunteer together, including a 90-year-old woman who volunteers with her 70-year-old daughter.

Of course, the volunteers are unpaid -- but they are feted and fed. Tonight the tournament will host a celebration for them, with a catered lobster dinner, live music and a fireworks show.

NORTON, Mass. -- John Senden made a double-eagle 2 on the 562-yard, par-5 second hole in the second round of the Deutsche Bank Championship on Saturday.

It was the third double-eagle on the PGA Tour in 2009. Senden used a 4-iron for the 250-yard shot.

"It landed about maybe 10 yards on the green and rolled right in," said Senden, who carded a 7-under 64 and was at 9-under for the tournament, three behind leaders Jim Furyk and Sean O'Hair. "I didn't see it go in, but it looked like it was just going to roll to the back of the green or just over the back, and then when I saw the cheers go up, I knew it was in the hole, so it was exciting."

Senden said he'd had one other double-eagle, at a state open event in his native Australia.

NORTON, Mass. -- Marc Leishman, a rookie from Australia who came into this week at 93rd on the FedEx Cup points list, needed a big week at the Deutsche Bank Championship if he was to crack the 70-man field for next week's BMW Championship.

NORTON, Mass. -- The joke on the driving range at TPC Boston on Tuesday concerned the new week-to-week volatility in the FedEx Cup playoffs. Scuttlebutt said that a player could advance all the way to the 30-man Tour Championship and still fail to finish in the top 125 on the money list, thus losing his Tour card.

But is that actually true?

Lee Janzen is the low man on the money list (149th) among those in the field at the Deutsche Bank this week. He barely made it into the field at last week's Barclays, the first stop in the four-week playoff series, and then made the cut to get to 119th in FedEx Cup points. Again, that was barely enough to make it into the 120-man field at the Deutsche Bank, which starts Friday.

According to Kevin Sutherland, who was hitting balls on the range Tuesday after losing a three-man playoff with Sergio Garcia and Vijay Singh at the Barclays, the two-time U.S. Open champion Janzen was making light of his situation. He was apparently convinced that by doing just enough to get to 70th in FedEx points after this week (the top 70 make the BMW the next week in St. Louis) and then doing just enough there to move to 30th (top 30 make the Tour Championship), he could get all the way to the Tour's ultimate event while remaining outside the top 125 on the money list.

Even if that math is right, which seems far-fetched, Rule 2-2 states that any player who ends the playoffs in the top 30 on the FedEx Cup points list shall keep his card the following year.

In other words, the Tour just saved Janzen from doing a whole lot of unnecessary calculation.