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Woods should sit out the rest of the 2011 season

Tiger Woods could do more harm than good by returning too soon © Getty Images

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• Profile: Tiger Woods

Perhaps it is time for Tiger Woods to go on a long-term break from the game of golf.

Okay, another one. But this time it would not be to allow a personal scandal to blow over, but rather to allow some worrisome physical complaints to allow themselves the time needed to heal.

Completely.

Woods has endured as ravaged a season so far in 2011 as he did in 2010, which would almost be considered a feat were it not for the concerning way recent months have fallen apart for him.

An injury that looked minor at Augusta National has now forced him to miss nearly three months of action - and counting. In some ways, he's the root cause for that - rushing back for the Players Championship a month after The Masters has now only set him back further, with no immediate signs of return.

"I've pushed it enough times throughout the years, and I keep kind of resetting myself, setting myself back," Woods said on Tuesday. "So I've played through [injuries] before, and I felt this [injury] wasn't anywhere near that. But I hurt myself again.

"It's time to actually have a different approach."

Perhaps that approach should see Woods write off the 2011 season completely, and vow only to come back fresh and raring to go at the start of next year.

It would seem silly to risk further damage to his body, when he will be struggling to achieve what he really wants - major victories - without the modicum of competitive testing he won't be able to get.

Of course, Woods will have concerns about remaining relevant - with the likes of Rory McIlroy becoming major winners, the golfing world are already tripping over themselves to move on to the next king of the course.

Woods has commercial concerns to contend with too - having left the International Management Group (IMG) to go solo with his long-term agent Mark Steinberg, he has much work to do to rebuild his portfolio of sponsors and corporate partners.

Winning golf tournaments (or, at the very least, playing in them) is the surest way of achieving that. Staying out of the arena for six months or more will only make the tasks that much harder.

Perhaps that is why the 14-time major champion has continually claimed he will be back for the next significant tournament on the calendar. The Players Championship (what an error that was), the US Open, the AT&T National (he hosts) and now the Open Championship - Woods has previously suggested he would be able to return to play in them all.

The Open is the next cab off the rank, but if recent experience is anything to go by then it sounds highly unlikely he will tee it up at Royal St George's.

"There's no timetable. ... That's hard for me," Woods admitted - at a press conference for this week's AT&T National - an event he is unable to play in but has strong links with the title sponsors of. "I've always been very goal-oriented about when I'm going to play, how I'm going to peak, how I'm going to get ready, how my practice schedule is going be, and I'm not doing that this time."

So set another timetable then. Rule out the rest of this season. Come back in 2012, fully recharged and ready to go.

The likes of McIlroy may be coming through, but Woods still has plenty of time on his side to pick up more major championships. He's said so himself.

"I've still got some time," the 35-year-old noted. "I feel pretty confident of what my future holds and very excited about it. I'm excited about coming out here and being ready to go instead of trying to kind of patch it."

But, unlike when he was younger, he can only do that fully if he's fully fit. And he can only get fully fit if he removes the pressure - both self-imposed and from external forces - to come back before he is fully ready.

Golf won't suffer in his absence, now McIlroy has reinvigorated much of the sport. But if he returns, and wins, after an extended break it will be the next huge storyline of the American's rollercoaster career.

The sponsors, and the fans, will quickly flood back.

A long-term break could be for the best, after all. For his health, and his career.

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.