Leading up to the playing of the Masters, the attempt at “Tiger-proofing” Augusta National generated a lot of buzz.

Clearly, if Tiger-proofing really meant giving Woods a better chance at winning, then the proofing was a success.

Honestly, can you imagine the meeting of Augusta directors deciding to make the course tougher by lengthening it? Did these guys really think that would level the playing field? Do they know Tiger Woods is one of the biggest hitters on tour? Whoops.

But the fact remains, try as they may, Tiger Woods will more than likely win - regardless of what people try to do.

The mystique of Woods is interesting to me because when he plays you know what you’re going to get. I always thought the most intriguing thing about sports was the surprises it can throw at fans.

One of the most overused sports clichés ever is “That’s why they play the games in the field and not on paper.” The best team doesn’t always win, right?

Wrong. Tiger Woods is the best, no arguments, and he continues to win. He continues to do the unthinkable.

And his continuing success and mastery of a golf ball and a golf club soon may take a big chunk out of the drama of golf.

Maybe someone should force Tiger to chill with Phil Mickelson and Greg Norman. They could probably pass on a few pointers about making something a lot more exciting than it should be. Choking could be contagious.

But I’m sure Tiger would somehow be unaffected by the pair, because, that’s right, Tiger always wins.

Where’s the fun in watching the same person enjoy success after success?

But regardless of the near certainty that goes along with Tiger playing golf, we all watch.

Maybe we’re waiting for him to start being a little human. Maybe we’re secretly hoping for Tiger to screw up really badly.

But, probably, we are just amazed.

Tiger Woods has the rarest trait an athlete could ever possess - his skill can more than compensate for the lack of drama.

For instance, do you think there was any doubt in Michael Jordan’s mind (while he was a Chicago Bull) that his late-game jumper would go in?

Everyone knew he’d make the most important shots. We became even more certain if Craig Ehlo was within 100 miles of the stadium. But despite knowing, we were enthralled just to see it happen.

I think Woods’ performance at Augusta this past weekend mirrors the most extraordinary performances by the most extraordinary athletes in sports history.

His approach shots were just unfair. The end results of Tiger’s shots looked like he was paying someone to run up to the green and drop the ball in the most ideal spots.

He had his fair share of struggles, but unlike every other player in the field, he knew he was the best. He knew everyone would have to catch him, and he knew everyone was terrified to try.

Perhaps that’s what makes Tiger so great - his ability to intimidate.

I refuse to envy anyone paired to play with him in any round, because how could anyone compete shot-for-shot with the one man who has seemingly every shot possible? I’m even sure that if the opportunity presented itself where Tiger needed to hit a bank shot off of a Port-A-John