Tiger Woods

Shortly after noon Tuesday, about 36 hours before the official start of his third AT&T National as tournament host, Tiger Woods was in a playful mood. Seated at the head of a conference table in the upstairs board room at Congressional Country Club, Woods smiled after glancing at Thursday’s first-round tee times.

“Hey, I’ve got Lucas,” he said, referring to the freshly minted United States Open champion, Lucas Glover. “How about that for a great draw? And Charley Hoffman. Perfect. I think maybe I’ll have to wear my hat like this.”

Woods whipped off his cap, grinning as he turned the ends of the brim up until it flattened into Hoffman’s trademark surfer-skater-rapper look. Then he spun the hat around backward and leaned into the table to address a few more serious issues.

Two weeks after his tie for sixth at Bethpage Black, Woods seemed well over the disappointment of failing to seriously contend in the second consecutive major in which he was the overwhelming pre-tournament favourite. This week brings Woods a real-life perspective to his golf ups and downs, provided by the thousands of servicemen and women who are admitted free and the wounded warriors who participate as honorary starters in the pro-am.

“We spend the week thanking them for coming out here and being a part of this event,” he said, “because what they do for our country here and abroad is phenomenal.”

While he might have been tough to live with during the weeks of fits and starts at Augusta National and on Long Island, Woods has digested the relevant learning and tossed the rest like rinds into the disposal.

“As a whole, I didn’t hit the ball as well as I would have liked at Augusta, and at the Open, I hit it well and I just didn’t putt well,” he said placidly.