I asked Woods Sunday to give me an assessment of Ridgewood Country Club: “Finally it played fast. It got quick yesterday. But today it’s really quick. There were a couple of mud balls out there, but still the greens are really fast. You’ve got to be very careful. I mean, if it would have played like this on Thursday, we would have had a major championship on our hands; basically, with four or five-inch rough and with greens like this.”

2. A tip of the hat to Martin Laird and Matt Kuchar, both of whom had to compete in a one-hole playoff for the win. Initially, the victory was in Laird’s hands — and putter — but he three putted on 18 to send the final round into the playoff. The three putts were uncharacteristic of Laird’s previous 17 holes, which he completed in just 22 putts.

Kuchar, who I saw with a constant smile on his face throughout the weekend, took the win with a gorgeous second-shot in the playoff. The ball rolled from the fairway to the back of the green and back down to rest two feet from the pin. Laird had very little shot from that point on. Both players finished at -12.

3. The best story of the week has to be Kevin Streelman. The 31-year-old, who finished tied for fourth at The Barclays in 2008 at Ridgewood Country Club, has spent most of his life living in the Chicago area. His parents, however, lived in Midland Park and Glen Rock, N.J. for about 31 years. In fact, his father’s parents are buried in a cemetery that is separated by a fence on the seventh hole. Streelman finished in a tie for third place with a four-day score of -10.

Earlier in the week, Streelman told me there was no additional pressure from having so many family and friends, many of whom still live in the area, in attendance.

4. I’m disappointed that Phil Mickelson missed the cut this week. I’m sure the PGA, Ridgewood Country Club, CBS and everyone else involved in The Barclays were, as well. The crowds around Woods were huge, and I can’t imagine them being any less around Mickelson should he have been in contention. I would have loved to pick Mickelson’s brain about what went wrong, however, he left without talking to the media on Friday. That’s very un-Phil-like. Mickelson is adored by the fans, especially in the tri-state area, and has a great relationship with reporters. For him to walk out without saying a word, you have to think he was extremely disappointed in his play.

5. I’m looking forward to 2011, when The Barclays will be played at Plainfield Country Club in Plainfield, N.J. That could be the last New Jersey stop for the tournament before it possibly goes to Westchester in 2012. I’d love to see another Liberty National stop, perhaps in 2013. Padraig Harrington said he believes that’s where this tournament should be played every year.

“Five was a tough tee shot for me because i had to take some off of it and hit it into the air,” Woods said. “That’s not an easy shot for me to do with the driver.”

Woods’ driver shot on Thursday landed 12 feet from the pin, but he three-putted to save par. Friday, Woods three-putted again; this time for a bogey.

“I didn’t feel comfortable (going for it) so I laid up and trusted my wedge game,” Woods said. “Unfortunately I three putted.”

The third of those putts was an easy tap in that Woods rushed, knocking it two feet past the hole creating a harder shot than the one prior.

“More than anything, I didn’t putt well,” he said. “I just could not get my speed right. When you have greens like this, you have to get the ball rolling quickly and I wasn’t doing that.”

Woods finished the day +2, bringing his two-day total to -4, three behind the leaders. He started the day on the back nine, racking up two birdies. The front nine, however, was a different story as he wrote four bogeys onto his scorecard. Woods wasn’t the only one who felt the greens were challenging.

“The later you go in the day, because they’re soft, they do get bumpy,” Stewart Cink said. “That’s going to be an obstacle that the players this afternoon and the players in the later groups this weekend will have to face.”

“Anywhere you don’t get a good tee shot you’re putting yourself under pressure,” Paraig Harrington said.

Wet weather earlier in the week left the fairways and greens soft and moist. Warm, humid weather came in Thursday and the course began to dry.

“It dried out but not to the extent that the ball was rolling. The ball didn’t pick up the amount of mud we thought it was going to,” said Cink, who had a share of the lead at -7 after two days. “That had a lot of players scared early on and you saw a lot of players hovering around even par.

“Once everybody got comfortable and the moisture started to evaporate a little bit from the fairways then I think the players got comfortable and took dead aim a little bit more.”

Cink and Jason Day weren’t the only ones in contention at the top of the leaderboard with -7s. So was Kevin Streelman, a 31-year-old from Chicago. Streelman has strong ties to Ridgewood Country Club. His parents lived in Midland Park and Glen Rock for a majority of their lives. His father’s parents are also buried at George Washington Memorial Park, which borders the seventh hole.

Streelman finished in fourth place at the 2008 Barclays, which was also held at Ridgewood.  He says this year he’ll have more family and friends in attendance than any tournament he’s ever been in. Streelman doesn’t think that adds any pressure to his performance.

“No, I don’t think pressure,” he said. “There’s so much love and support that it’s very encouraging. I love it.”

While Streelman will have a large following throughout the weekend, the majority of fans will be cheering for Woods. They’ll be holding out hope to see his first fist pump of the year Sunday evening on eighteen.

The Barclays continues Saturday and Sunday. Follow Scott Stanchak on Twitter (@ScottStanchak) as he brings you live coverage of the final round on Sunday.

About The Barclays:

The Barclays is one of four PGA TOUR playoff events for the FedExCup. The top 125 golfers on the regular season points list have a chance to win the $10 million dollar pot. Players earn points based on finishing position — points in the playoffs are worth five times the amount they were in regular TOUR events. By the third tournament, only the top 30 will remain in the hunt.

Rest of the Playoff:

Sept. 3-6: TPC Boston (Norton, MA) – Top 100 compete
Sept. 9-12: Cog Hill (Lemont, Ill.) – Top 70 compete
Sept. 23-26: East Lake C.C. (Atlanta, GA) – Top 30 compete

Recent Memory:

2009: Liberty National (Jersey City, N.J.) – Heath Slocum
2008: Ridgewood Country Club (Paramus, N.J.) – Vijay Singh
2007: Westchester Country Club (Rye, N.Y.) – Steve Stricker

Next Up:

2011: Plainfield Country Club (Plainfield, N.J.)

Top Five Best Chances to Win: (No particular order)

Zach Johnson: The 26-year-old is on an unlucky hot streak. Johnson had a three-shot lead heading into the final round of the U.S. Open, only to finish that day with an 81. Then, at the PGA Championship, he was penalized two shots for grounding his club in a supposed bunker. Had he gotten those two strokes back, Johnson would have forced a playoff for the win.

Vijay Singh: Singh loves playing in the Barclays. He’s a four-time winner, including in 2006 at Ridgewood Country Club. Singh has 22 wins since turning 40 seven years ago. Some players just get better with age.

Tiger Woods: It would be impossible to write Woods out of any tournament he plays in. With his divorce finalized, perhaps now Woods will have somewhat of a clearer mind on the course. Woods was injured in 2008 when The Barclays was in Ridgewood.

Phil Mickelson: The lefty can move into the No. 1 spot in the world with a win or a second- or third-place finish if Woods finishes out of the top four. There’s a few other scenarios, but basically the better Mickelson does, the worse Woods has to do. The Garden State loves Mickelson and he’ll feel that energy all weekend long.

Matt Kuchar: The American owns nine top 10 finishes in 2010, along with three in the top three. Kuchar has improved each year since turning pro in 2000. The Barclays, being played near the largest media market in the world, could help him open some eyes.

Top Five Pairings: (No particular order)

1. Zach Johnson, Robert Allenby, J.B. Holmes: Thursday, 12:54 p.m.; Friday, 7:54 a.m.

2. Phil Mickelson, Justin Rose, Jeff Overton: Thursday, 1:16 p.m.; Friday, 8:16 a.m.

3. Hunter Mahan, Bubba Watson, Matt Kuchar: Thursday, 8:05 a.m.; Friday, 1:05 p.m.

4. Bo Van Pelt, Anthony Kim, Camilo Villegas: Thursday, 7:54 a.m.; Friday, 12:54 p.m.

5. K.J. Choi, Ryan Moore, Sean O’Hair: Thursday: 7:54 a.m.; Friday, 12:54 p.m.

Follow Scott on Twitter @ScottStanchak for continuous Barclays coverage this weekend.

It’s been less than a week since Tiger Woods’ early morning car accident and the rumor mill is chugging along at full steam.  There’s no need to revisit all of the details of last Saturday’s wreck.  He’s already admitted it was his fault.  There’s also no need to go into the reported details of his extramarital affairs.  Today he all but acknowledged some were true.  What needs to be examined is the impact all of this has on the sport of golf.

Woods plays a sport known for its dignity and class.  It’s also a game of manners — i.e. honors at the tee — and respect — i.e. players shaking hands after a round, a gesture rarely seen in professional sports these days.  There’s no doubt he brought golf to its current level of popularity, which is perhaps working against him now.  He’s the reason thousands arrive before the sun is fully above the horizon to camp out around the 18th green, hoping it’s Tiger who holes his ball in the cup atop the leaderboard.

There’s no question that Woods will no longer be looked at as just the world’s top golfer.  Stories like this never permanently go away, they only fade.  Parents may still tell their children they can be just like Tiger Woods, but only on the course not off.

As of recently, the worst news surrounding Woods’ career was his cursing.  It’s been widely documented that he has a temper after a bad shot, but this is a whole different cloud, one PGA officials can’t weather, only Tiger himself can.

I don’t think many people are surprised to learn about Woods’ wandering eye.  After all, he’s good looking, the world’s No. 1 golfer and has a bank account that could bailout Chrysler — too bad he’s a Buick man.  There have been stories for years that he’s a ladies man, but now Tiger, the Tiger, has been caught.

It’s ironic that Woods plays a sport that requires everyone around him to be silent.  Now he’s the one trying to be as quiet as possible.  I would never tell Tiger to emerge from behind the curtain to tell his story in front of the cameras.  Personal business is exactly that.  He has every right to deal with these matters the way he feels necessary.  Right now, it’s through statements on his official Web site.

What he needs to do though is admit all of his mistakes and move forward.  We’ve learned in the past that those who admit their faults are often, for the most part, forgiven.  Look at Alex Rodriguez, a neighbor of Woods, and how he’s rebounded after a messy divorce and steroid admission.  Former President Bill Clinton eventually admitted his affair and his popularity ratings in office have yet to be repeated.

Woods will eventually come out of hiding.  He’s not slated to play in a tournament until the end of January, and that may very well be the first time he’s forced to speak publicly about his situation.  Woods will then have to prove his personal problems had no impact on his playing ability.

Tiger has lots of work to do before then.  Only this time, it has nothing to do with who’s chasing him on the course.

The biggest names in golf are in New Jersey for the event, including Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Vijay Singh, Ernie Els, Y.E Yang and Sergio Garcia. They’ll certainly be challenged by Liberty National’s layout, especially the up-and-down greens. The course is so well put together that the driver boxes feature the same quality grass that most courses across the country use for their greens.

Here are 10 observations from Tuesday:

1. These guys practice a lot. I watched this year’s Master’s winner Angel Cabrera spend nearly an hour and a half on the driving range and practice green. Afterward, he hit the course for 18 holes, then returned to the green. This was definitely an eight hour day for some of the players.

2. The course is beautiful, and it better be with a $500,000 initiation fee. Liberty National has the perfect mix of long par-5s, challenging par-4s and a couple of short par-3s mixed in. There’s water lining several of the fairways and the fescue is messy. A good driver is a must at this course, but a stellar short game is even more important. I can definitely see the PGA awarding another tournament here.

3. I walked with Mickelson a little bit, who said he loves playing this course. Mickelson, a Liberty National member, also chatted with Tom Kite, the course’s designer, for a while and told him the same.

Speaking of Mickelson, he looks to be in great shape and seemed very personal with the fans. He signed many autographs and told those who didn’t get one that he’d be signing all weekend.

4. Bubba Watson can drive the ball. Watson, the PGA distance leader, hits the ball as cleanly as anyone out there. His shots just rocket off his club face. It didn’t matter if he was hitting an iron or a driver, the ball was going far.

5. If I had to select my favorite for this weekend, I’d go with Padraig Harrington. Harrington, a former winner of this tournament, was playing very well during his practice round. I walked a few holes with his crew and Harrington was spot on most of the time. The best I saw was him holing an eagle on a Par-5 (Hole 6, 548 yards) with a nice drive and a spot-on hit to the green using his hybrid.

6. No, Woods was not at the course on Tuesday. Several people were speculating that he had played early in the morning, as he usually does, but I can confirm that he did not.

7. PGA players do miss. I stood just a few feet away as some of the best in the game practiced their putting, and believe it or not, they don’t make every three-footer they take. They spend so much time trying to read the break correctly and keep putting until they have it mastered. I watched one spend over 30 minutes on the same three-foot putt.

On another note, I did hear one group of players on the second hole yell “fore” following a tee shot.

8. Ryan Moore comes into the Barclays off a win last weekend at the Wyndham Championship. The former can’t-miss college prospect hasn’t had as storied a career as was predicted, but he’s starting to find rhythm again. Moore, a quiet guy who has a style all his own on the course, could be a sleeper.

9. It was very, very hot out there. Bring sunscreen and a hat. You’ll definitely thank me.

10. Great job by the PGA all around. The media was well taken care of, everything was well organized and the folks there were very friendly. I look forward to covering more events in the future, including next year in Ridgewood.

I consider myself a little above an average golfer. I try to play at least once a week, hitting up local courses here in New Jersey to hone my skills. Anything more than that and the stars were aligned — got home early, solid weather, etc. I get the same feeling pulling out my clubs as Ferris Bueller did taking Alan’s father’s car for a spin: You don’t know where they’re going to take you, but giddy up.

There’s a calm sense of relaxation when hitting the course. Not to mention, the fresh air, exercise and complexity of launching a small ball hundreds of yards into an apple-sized hole in the ground. It’s challenging enough to make even the best players frustrated.

I recently played a course in Sussex County and shot an 86. Now, shooting an 86 is not an every-outing occurrence for me. In fact, it was the best I’ve ever done. That day I pared or birdied the first six holes on the course before dropping a seven on a par-5 and a 10 on a par-4. That eventually led to a front nine of 41. This is where it becomes frustrating.

I shoot a wonderful 41, but should have done at least seven strokes better, and that’s if I’m playing at my best. Combine my back nine 45 with a what-should-have-been — or rightfully so, what-could-have-been — 34 and I’m shooting 79.

Ever keep track of how many times you say “if only” on the course? Don’t do it. I only presented the scenario above to prove how it can drive you nuts. Learn from the mistakes you make and be prepared to corner them head-on the next time you’re presented with a similar challenge.

Instead of dwelling, what I’ve taken from my 86 is the potential I have as a golfer. As I said before, I consider myself “a little above average,” but believe I could be even better if I just start making solid hits. I waste at least five or six strokes each round just on hitting “chunk” shots. It’s frustrating, but the best thing to do is clear your head and move on.

Perfect example: A few Sunday’s ago, I played a popular course in Hackettstown, N.J. I wasn’t hitting the ball extremely well, but was able to tame my score. On 18, I hit a drive about 100 yards on a 550-yard, par-5. Instead of getting mad over why I’m not hitting my second shot 300 yards to the pin, I pulled out my 3 Wood and dropped a perfect 225 yard shot straight down the fairway. From there, I used my 4 Hybrid to knock the ball to just outside a bunker resting right next to the green. A chip and a putt later, I was in the hole in five.

What I did there was turn that one bad shot into a great hole. Had I hit that desired 250-yard drive, I could have made a horrible second shot and been worse off. It’s all about capitalizing on the shot you’re presented with.

There’s also another reason to become a better golfer. The better you are, the less tired you should be at the end of a round. I played with a friend the day I shot an 86 who hit a 126. That means he had to take 30 more strokes that day – not to mention a bunch more practice swings. You stand there and take 30 swings and I bet you’ll be tired.

The biggest thing about playing the game of golf is to have fun. Each time out on the links is a new challenge. As long as you’re playing with a smile on your face than there’s nothing better. That’s the only thing I’m completely sure about in this game.

Have a golfing story to share. Post your thoughts in the comment’s section below.