That strange sucking sound emanating last weekend from Washington, D.C., wasn't some politician kissing up to voters or lobbyists.
It was the considerable vacuum created by Tiger Woods' absence at the AT&T National.
We're not going to belabor the point because it doesn't exactly come as a surprise. Everybody knew that, minus Woods, interest in the PGA Tour product was going to suffer a falloff, from the turnstiles to the television. Same for the two remaining major championships, and quite possibly, the Ryder Cup.
But the D.C. event apparently represented the imperfect storm, if you will. Woods serves as the host of the second-year event, and since he was unavailable to attend -- much less play -- because of his surgery last month, the tournament's approval rating dropped at a presidential clip.
According to Washington-area media outlets, the third-round attendance tally of 22,000 represented a drop of 15,000 from last year's inaugural event, while the final-round numbers fell off 7,000 fans to 30,000. Both are still solid numbers for most tour stops, but disappointing in that the AT&T, unlike last year when it was pulled together in three months, had a year to market itself and exploit its enviable position on the July 4 weekend.
As for the ratings on CBS Sports, as was the case when Woods didn't play at the Buick Open two weeks earlier, the data remains grim. The overnight ratings for the final round were down 48% from last year and the third round dropped 35%.
The long-held belief is that Woods is the lone guy who really "moves the needle" on the tour. In fact, based on early fan and media-coverage feedback, that appears to be selling him short.
Woods actually is the needle.
The rest is just a haystack.