text: By Steve Silverman 
   
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   At a certain point, all of the stragglers are going to let it go — the hangers-on who still believe that Tiger Woods has a chance to regain at least some of his past glory and start playing excellent golf once again, winning a tournament here or there and maybe even another major. 
   
   But based on what happened in the first round Thursday at the U.S. Open and the third round of the Memorial Tournament earlier this month, those of us still holding onto Tiger confidence and Tiger hope are going to give it up in short order. 
   
   Tiger opened with an 80 in the first round at Chambers Bay, and the look on his face was a familiar one when he topped his 3-wood and saw it roll up the fairway and into the hazard. 
   
   The look was familiar because when I play with my buddies Bobbo, Junior (aka Muscles) and Ron, I often see that look on their faces when they hit a worm burner up the fairway. And they see that same expression on my face when I do it. 
   
   Bobbo is always the one with the quick remark. When I hit that shot, he looks me dead in the eye and he lets me know without any hesitation. 
   
   “You know, you are not very good at golf,” he says. “You’re actually quite lousy.” 
   
   No apologies and no “you’ll get ‘em next time.” He’s straight forward, and he was the first one to point out that Tiger was beaten by 15-year-old amateur Cole Hammer in the first round. The youngster finished three strokes better. 
   
   There is no getting around that Tiger is playing lousy golf. You may want to give him credit for sticking with it and “working through the process,” but for those of us who have been in the Tiger camp for years, this is just a brutal development that may be worse than any elite athlete has ever gone through. 
   
   Tiger was not one of the best golfers of his generation; he was the best. His peers came from previous eras in golf, as in Jack Nicklaus, Ben Hogan and Bobby Jones. Arnold Palmer may have had more charisma than any of the other three, but he was not as great or consistent. 
   
   Tiger had the charisma to match Palmer, and he seemed like he was as good or better as those other historic figures. 
   
   Nicklaus was among his biggest supporters, saying on several occasions that he believed Tiger would break his record of 18 majors. The Golden Bear will still come out with words of support, but it seems like he is just trying to be kind at this point. 
   
   Willie Mays is often in the photo when it comes to great athletes who lost it at the end. There’s that play in the 1973 World Series where as a member of the Mets, he lost a fly ball in the outfield in sunny Oakland. That clip is regularly shown to depict the ravages that hit aging athletes. That play and a sinking batting average doesn’t take anything away from the fact that Mays is almost certainly the greatest living ex-player, and perhaps the best or second-best player all-time behind Babe Ruth. 
   
   But Mays was 42 in 1973, and high expectations had long since evaporated. He would occasionally get a key hit or make a play, but his ability to play consistently had disappeared by the end of the 1971 season. 
   
   Tiger is 39 years old and he should still have good years left. Nicklaus won five tournaments, including three majors, after he turned 40. Palmer won six tournaments after that age, but none of them were majors. 
   
   Tiger has never been the same since Thanksgiving of 2008, when his sex scandal became known to the public – and his wife. 
   
   He has had numerous injuries as well, but it seems the pristine aura around his image cracked wide open when his social activities became front-page news. 
   
   There were those who reveled in his misery and those who had some level of empathy. But it seemed as though the greatest golfer in the world would find a way to get his game back. 
   
   While he had a great 2013 season with five tournament victories, he has not come close to winning a major. His career total of 14 majors remains stuck on hold, exactly where it has been for the last seven years. 
   
   Based on the way he has played since the end of the 2013 season – when it all started to go sideways for him – that total is not going to change. 
   
   I have always been in the camp that wanted to see Tiger do well again, because it makes golf a better game. But I have to agree with Bobbo at this point. 
   
   “Tiger, you stink.” 
   
   Follow Steve on Twitter at @ProFootballBoy ||||| Woods prepares to tee off on the 12th hole Friday. (Photo: Michael Madrid, USA TODAY Sports) 
   
   UNIVERSITY PLACE, Wash. – Tiger Woods won't be heading to the weekend of the U.S. Open at Chambers Bay. 
   
   He'll be heading home to Florida. 
   
   Woods shot 76 in the second round to go along with Thursday's 80 to finish 16-over par. 
   
   Masters champion Jordan Spieth was the leader from the early groups, coming in with a 68-67 for 5-under. Dustin Johnson and Henrik Stenson, the co-leaders after the first round, had later tee times Friday afternoon. 
   
   Despite starting his second round Friday with a bogey – the 10th time he's done that in his last 11 rounds – Woods looked more relaxed and was more in control of his game. On his first nine holes, he shot 2-over-par 36. 
   
   But he wasn't even close as the top 60 and ties will make the cut 
   
   Starting on the 10th, Woods hit his second shot into hay near the green and had to slash out his third onto the green. On his way down the hill, he slipped and fell on his backside before needing two putts to make bogey. 
   
   Woods made birdie from 10 feet on the 12th but finished with bogeys on the 14th and 18th holes. He hit five greens and five fairways in regulation and needed 16 putts. 
   
   It is the second time Woods will miss the cut in the U.S. Open, the other time coming in 2006 when his mind and heart were elsewhere after his father passed away the previous month. 
   
   Since turning pro, he has missed just four cuts in 67 starts in a major before this week. In his first 37 major starts, he didn't miss a cut and won 10 times. In his last 30 heading into this week, he missed five cuts while winning four times. 
   
   His previous missed cuts came in the 2006 U.S. Open, the 2009 British Open and the 2011 and 2014 PGA Championship. 
   
   This will be Woods' 14th missed cut worldwide since turning pro in 1996, but his fourth in his last 11 starts. And one of those starts was in his last event, where he finished last at The Memorial and shot his worst score for 18 holes (85) and 72 holes (302). 
   
   Woods will next play July 2-5 in the Greenbrier Classic in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia. Then he will have a week off and play in the British Open on the Old Course at St. Andrews in Fife, Scotland. 
   
   PHOTOS: Friday at the U.S. Open ||||| All in a day's work 
   
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target: – Tiger Woods' second round of the US Open is over, and you will currently find his name second from the bottom on the leaderboard. Which means that out of 156 golfers, he is tied for 154th place. Some are still playing, and it's possible one or two more might end up behind him, but no matter what, his 16-over-par means that he will miss the cut by a mile, reports USA Today. What's more, this is pretty much business as usual for Woods these days. "At a certain point, all of the stragglers are going to let it go—the hangers-on who still believe that Tiger Woods has a chance to regain at least some of his past glory and start playing excellent golf once again, winning a tournament here or there and maybe even another major," writes Steve Silverman at CBS. Those looking for a new phenom might pay attention to 15-year-old Cole Hammer, who is about to start his second round. It's a long shot, but if he finished at 4-under today, he'd probably make the cut.