Tiger Woods

The Open Championship has come and gone, and Tiger Woods is left without a win. He’s climbing his way back up to the top, but will he win a major in 2012?

Whether he likes it or not Tiger Woods is still the face of golf despite not winning a major tournament for a few years. Woods, Phil Mickelson and Bubba Watson is the pairing that will receive the most attention in the first and 2nd rounds of the U.S. Open beginning Thursday at the Olympic Club in San Francisco. Tiger is coming off a win at the Memorial and seems to be playing his best golf in years. Mickelson is still a factor and Bubba Watson is a young emerging star coming off winning the Masters in April. The 3-some will tee off at 9:33am (CT) today.

There are athletes the public loves, and others that they love to hate. Nielsen and partner E-Poll Market Research surveyed America on the they jocks they most dislike, and the top two shouldn’t be much of a surprise.

In a surprise move, Tiger Woods has dropped Steve Williams, his caddie of 12 years. “I want to express my deepest gratitude to Stevie for all his help, but I think it’s time for a change,” Woods said in a statement.  “Stevie is an outstanding caddie and a friend and has been instrumental in many of my accomplishments. I wish him great success in the future.”

Tiger Woods doesn’t know when he will find his way back onto a golf course, but this much he does know: He will be 100 percent when he does. Woods spoke to reporters Tuesday while attending the AT&T National, a tournament which benefits his foundation, and said he was tired of playing through injuries.

Tiger Woods tries to win his 5th Masters and 15th major tournament when he plays at this year's Masters. Jack Nicklaus is the all-time leader with 18 major tournament wins including 6 Masters titles. Tiger is 35 years old and has won 14 major titles. Tiger has struggled the last 2 years and it's hard to feel bad for him because most of this was brought on by questionable choices off the course.