Twenty-five years down the line, not much has changed. The game's leading player, and arguably the best of all time, continues to produce the remarkable, and does so with astonishing frequency.

Since he turned professional in late 1996 and won his first U.S. Tour title in only his fifth start, he has virtually redefined the game.

Not only has he ushered in an era of multi-million dollar endorsements and lucrative appearance money, but his Afro-American-Asian background has spread the sport to an audience far beyond its traditional image of male, white and middle-class.

Then there is the Tiger factor -- his remarkable psychological advantage over virtually all his rivals in every event he plays simply because he has made such a habit of winning.

If he brings his A-game to the course, his peers readily accept he will triumph.

"Tiger wins something like 30 percent of tournaments he plays in, and that's an exceptional win rate," three-times major champion Nick Price told Reuters.

"When Tiger is playing well, he is going to win. If Tiger plays well and the other guys play well, he is going to win. It's as simple as that."

Tom Watson, like Woods, has won eight major titles and he acknowledges the special impact made by the 27-year-old American since he burst on to the scene: "Tiger Woods is the most important thing that has happened in golf for 50 years."

FIELDING QUESTIONS

This year, though, there has been widespread talk of a 'Tiger slump', and the world number one has become increasingly annoyed as he persistently has to field questions on the subject at virtually every tournament he plays.

Mightily though he tried on a brutally tough Oak Hill layout last week, an out-of-sorts Woods did himself no favours as he tied for 39th at the U.S. PGA Championship on Sunday for his worst major finish as a professional.

He was bidding for his ninth career major and his first since last year's U.S. Open, but ended the week completing his first season without a major victory since 1998.

Woods has now gone six majors without success and, even though golfing great Jack Nicklaus once went winless in 12 consecutive majors, 'Tiger slump' talk is bound to intensify over the coming weeks and months.

How he handles the media during this period will be intriguing. Woods, an intensely private man who craves the anonymity that is now denied him, has become a master of the news conference environment.

Ever since being compromised by a magazine journalist early in his career after naively exchanging jokes in what he thought was an off-the-record discussion, Woods has opted out of one-to-one interviews.

At tournaments, though, he has perfected a statesman-like approach to news conferences, and has hardly ever put a foot wrong in giving considered answers to all questions in exactly the manner he desires.

However he would far prefer not to be quite so visible in the public eye.

"One of the things that I certainly miss from back in my college days is anonymity," he said last week. "It would be nice to have that and be as successful as I have been, but you can't have both.

NOT COMFORTABLE

"When I first came out, turned pro and had some success, I fought against it. I wasn't really comfortable with it and I'm still not really comfortable with it now.

"It's not like you walk around that way at home with eyes looking at you. It just feels a little awkward at times.

"I understand it and I accept it, but it's not one of those things that you have to like."

Away from friends and family and his beloved hobbies of fishing and scuba diving, Woods is at his happiest in the heat of golfing battle and his life-long goal is to eclipse the record 18 majors won by Nicklaus.

PGA Tour player Jay Haas believes this target is well within Tiger's reach, but only if the world number one can maintain motivation and focus.

"As he goes through different life experiences, such as marriage and a family, will he be able to compartmentalise all the different facets of his life the way Jack (Nicklaus) did?" Haas pondered at Oak Hill.

"That's the thing that really struck me about Nicklaus. He was able to separate everything.

"It takes a special individual to juggle all those things as deftly as Jack did, but I think Tiger might have the ability to do that too."

Based on the remarkable career of Eldrick T. Woods so far, and despite his current run of six winless majors, Haas could well be proved right.