Should Kelly Be Back This Week?

In a little while, Kelly Tilghman will return from her two week timeout for the lynch comment when the Golf Channel airs first round coverage of the Buick Invitational. This event marks the season debuts of Mickelson and Woods, will showcase a rendition of the 2008 US Open course, and is widely regarded nowadays as the event that really starts the season. Woods is going for a fourth straight win in the event and looking to tie Arnold Palmer on the all time wins list on the PGA Tour.

With all of those storylines presented, wouldn't it be more prudent for the Golf Channel to get out of the way of those and let Kelly sit out another week? Steve Elling thinks so:

The distasteful subplot detracts from what otherwise stands as the true curtain-raiser for the 2008 season, with both Woods and world No. 2 Phil Mickelson making their first starts. No knock on Tilghman, who made an awful slip of the tongue with no apparent malice aforethought, but wouldn't it have been far more prudent for the Golf Channel to bench her for one more week, so that she wasn't coming out of the penalty box the same week that Woods is making his debut from a four-month layoff from official events?

Darned straight it would. Then again, maybe they have embraced the controversy to fuel the ratings. A spokesman said Tilghman is expected to clean up the mess when the first-round broadcast opens Thursday, shortly after 3 p.m. (ET).

I can't exactly argue with the point. Still, it is also in the interest of the game to try and move past this entire situation as quick as it can. I'm sure TGC considers that as their motivation for not extending the suspension of Tilghman. I also think they are hoping that a quick set of remarks and another apology at the top of the telecast will be enough to move the story out of the limelight and bring the attention back to the on course action. We will see though.