On most days, a 22-handicapper would have better luck finding a ball in the deepest U.S. Open rough than he or she would have finding a silver lining around a tournament not graced by the presence of Eldrick Tiger Woods.

Tiger is only the world’s most recognizable athlete, the one active sporting figure who evokes comparisons to Michael Jordan, Muhammad Ali and Babe Ruth, the greatest of the great. And you bet that the people who run Ridgewood Country Club and The Barclays Classic were wishing upon a star that Tiger’s wincing and limping at Torrey Pines represented exactly what Retief Goosen suggested they did:

An overstated expression of pain from a champion who either, a) wanted to wash his 14th major title in exaggerated glory or; b) provide himself an excuse in case he lost the Open to a journeyman, Rocco Mediate, the way Ben Hogan once lost an Open to a range pro named Jack Fleck.

Goosen was dead wrong, of course, and the bulletin that Woods had won No. 14 on a broken leg and a torn ACL that would require season-ending surgery hit Ridgewood and The Barclays like a hooked 1-iron smacks into a greenskeeper’s shed.

But the dent didn’t cause irreparable damage to the first installment of the PGA Tour’s second playoff season, known as the FedEx Cup. In fact, Tiger’s absence could serve to improve the game’s long-term health.

Golf has burned for legitimate threats to Woods’ reign to emerge, anyway, and with Tiger down and out significant events such as The Barclays become the perfect places for those men – whoever they are – to finally declare themselves.

When Woods returns to the tour, he will be entering the second half of his prime. The sport will benefit most if his rivals on the back nine are superior to those who popped up on the front nine.

Jack Nicklaus had to deal with Arnold Palmer and Gary Player in his early years, and then Lee Trevino and Tom Watson later on. Those titans combined to win 30 majors, with Trevino and Watson each breaking the Bear’s heart on multiple Grand Slam occasions.

Woods’ top four rivals – Phil Mickelson, Vijay Singh, Ernie Els and Goosen – have combined to win 11 majors, and not a single one was punctuated by a dramatic, down-the-stretch hole-out to temporarily shatter Tiger’s aura of invincibility.

So this little breather from Woods’ dominance gives the older, beaten-down set a chance to stop wobbling and regain its legs for one final rush at Tiger, and allows the younger hopefuls, the Anthony Kims of the world, to build up some confidence and upgrade their portfolios and bank accounts without Woods shadowing their every chip and putt.

This is where The Barclays comes in. It’s being staged inside the world’s most prominent marketplace, before the Mets and Yanks make whatever postseason pushes they’re going to make, before Eli Manning defends his title and Brett Favre throws his first fastball that counts.

People here should care about a big-league event unfolding in their back yard, and not simply because Joe Torre is doing ads hyping the tour’s attempt to create its own October, with The Barclays assuming the role of the division series.