There are many things to love about sports. One is that they are cut and dry; mediocre standups can wait in line at open mics for years, chasing a delusional dream until their “What’s the deal with lawn darts?” bit no longer flies. But in sports, if you can’t bench 300 pounds and run a sub 5 forty, you have no hope of even sniffing the NFL. Another great thing is that they’ve become a fusion of athletic prowess and business acumen, with wiser teams staying competitive longer.

But the best thing about sports is that there are no foregone conclusions.

Years ago, the fact that Tiger Woods would become the all-time majors winner was considered to be exactly that. But a funny thing happened on the way to history. Tiger got hurt. Yes, everyone’s been downplaying the injury and using their breath instead to laud the heroic round at the US Open that led to said operation. But Tiger Woods is still four majors short of tying Jack Nicklaus. And he just missed the cut at the British Open.

This is not cause for ultimate disaster alarm. Tiger could very well play for another ten years and still get the precious few wins he needs to become the greatest golfer of all time. But the man is mortal. And he didn’t used to be. Vegas had him at nearly even money, above every other golfer and the field. Now? He’s just another guy out there.

While we wait and see if Tiger’s knee can hold up to hoist five more trophies, how about a little late love for the Golden Bear?