HOYLAKE, England -- Even when hes not the favourite, Tiger Woods is still the show at the British Open. Woods earned that attention by piling up majors at a faster rate than anyone in history, and the attention is just as great now because his recent past includes back surgery and his immediate future is more uncertain than ever. ESPN plans to show his entire round online Thursday. Not to be overlooked at golfs oldest championship, however, is a new generation of stars. Rickie Fowler and Harris English will be playing ahead of him. Two groups behind will be Jordan Spieth and Hideki Matsuyama. They are among 25 players who share a bond that speaks to the state of golf. Woods has never won a major during their professional careers. Yes, they saw his dominance on TV. They just never experienced it. They were not around for the decade when Woods won majors with regularity, sometimes by a record score, sometimes by a record margin. They missed the days that were so Tiger-centric a player couldnt get through an interview without being asked something about Woods. "Tiger ruined a lot of guys lives," Charles Howell III, a longtime friend of Woods who lived through those times, said earlier in the year. "He caused a lot of people some sleepless Sunday nights. But he also motivated an entire generation behind him." Howells point was that while the next generation might have been in awe of Woods, being outside the arena allowed them to study him without getting scarred. They learned from the way he worked. They were more prepared than the generation before them. The talk at this British Open is that it is more open than ever. But then, thats been the case since Woods won his last major six years ago. Since that 2008 U.S. Open, 19 players have won majors, and no one has won more than two. In the 24 majors leading up to his last major, Woods won six, Phil Mickelson won three and no one else won more than one. "Looking at the different amount of winners in the last five years at the major championships, were seeing so many players win," Henrik Stenson said Wednesday. Its so competitive. At some point there might have been 20 guys battling out for it. And now it feels like anyone in the field can win if they have a great week. So its definitely tighter." Stenson, No. 2 in the world and among the favourites this week, will be playing alongside Woods for the opening two days. "Hes just one of the guys I need to beat if I want to do well this week," Stenson said. "But its a good start if you know you can beat him." Woods is playing his first major of the year because of March 31 back surgery. Returning to Royal Liverpool was always the target -- he won his third claret jug on these links in 2006 when it was brown and fast, not green and slower as it is this year. Woods came back sooner than he expected, missing the cut at Congressional three weeks ago in what had the feeling of a 36-hole rehab assignment. He feels healthy. He feels strong. And he still commands a presence. That much was clear when Woods played only two holes Wednesday as spectators scrambled for a view. He brings energy and excitement to a golf tournament. Does he bring intimidation? The Open is his next opportunity to see if he can regain the mystique that a younger generation has yet to experience. Matt Kuchar, who played a practice round with Woods on Sunday, doesnt think it will take much. Hes not sure Woods ever lost it. "The kids today grew up idolizing him," Kuchar said. "He gets back on form again, I dont think that intimidation factor is gone at all. These are the kids that grew up watching him and wanting to be him." Kuchar said it can be intimidating to play alongside, although Patrick Reed sure wasnt flustered having Woods in the group ahead of him at Doral, and Spieth didnt looked rattled when he shot 63 at Torrey Pines (the North Course) with Woods in his group. Is there a difference between watching dominance on TV and seeing it in person? "Youre saying a different intimidation for the guys who are now just coming up and just watched it on TV as opposed to my generation that were actually losing by 10 to it?" Kuchar said with a laugh. "Im not sure. If I was to go shoot baskets with Michael Jordan right now, I would be pretty intimidated. So its probably similar. The guys that played against him and got scored 40 on probably have a similar feeling to me in the awe that surrounds a guy like that." It all unfolds on Thursday, where the only mystery greater than Woods in the English weather. The final day of practice featured sunshine and rain. Hoylake when its green is there to be attacked -- its the only course on the Open rotation with four par 5s. The greens are not severe. The fairways are relatively flat, which makes them more fair. All eyes will be on Woods, and theres nothing unusual about that. The difference is that no one is sure what they will see. Fake MLB Jerseys . Arsenal had already scored its goals in the third round fixture when the fierce rivalry turned ugly in the final ten minutes as Walcott was being carried off on a stretcher. Fake NBA Jerseys . Power had a two-lap average of 218.896 mph in qualifying Friday at the high-banked, high-speed 1 1/2-mile track for his 34th career pole. https://www.fakejerseys.us.com/. Meanwhile, the Jets extended their winning streak to four and remain perfect under Paul Maurice. Its the Jets second four-game winning streak of the season, the other coming in mid-November. Fake Baseball Jerseys . With the Nets winning streak in jeopardy, Williams scored 23 points, 11 in the final six minutes, to lead Brooklyn to a 104-99 victory over the Charlotte Bobcats on Wednesday night. Fake NHL Jerseys .com) - Sporting Kansas City announced Thursday that club has signed former on-loan midfielder Jimmy Medranda to a permanent contract from Colombian side Deportivo Pereira.MADRID, Spain -- Real Madrid spoiled crosstown rival Atletico Madrids short honeymoon as Spanish leader by winning its Copa del Rey semifinal first leg, while Barcelona also took control of its series with a victory over Real Sociedad. Pepe, Jese Rodriguez, and Angel Di Maria all scored as Madrid won a bad-tempered crosstown derby 3-0 to humble Atletico on Wednesday, three days after it took the outright league lead, with only its second loss of the season and first in 23 matches. Barcelona did its part to increase the chances of a clasico in the April 19 final by beating 10-man Sociedad 2-0 at the Camp Nou. Pepe spent much of the game riling up Atletico striker Diego Costa after putting Madrid ahead in the 17th minute at Santiago Bernabeu Stadium where his shot deflected off defender Emiliano Insua past goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois. The hosts dominated the tetchy derby as Courtois made a string of first-half saves before Jese Rodriguez broke through in the 57th as the young striker continued his impressive season by using a quick touch to guide Angel Di Marias pass under the Belgium keeper. Diego Costas frustrations got the better of him as a yellow card in the 61st means Atleticos leading scorer will miss the return leg next week, which leaves the attack depleted with David Villa also expected to be sidelined by injury. With Gareth Bale out for the second straight game and Cristiano Ronaldo strangely subdued, Di Maria capped a productive night with a goal from another deflected shot in the 73rd. It came just after Luka Modric cleared Diego Godins header off the goal-line for Atleticos lone scoring opportunity. Madrid has yet to concede in eight domestic cup matches this season. "Everybody was fantastic, we did everything very well," Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti said after Madrid ttook a page out of Atleticos book and played with his pressure to keep the visitors from getting any time on the ball.dddddddddddd "We showed we can excel in these types of contests." Atleticos first defeat since October came three days after it took over the league lead outright for the first time since 1996. "We didnt come through and play the kind of game we wanted to. Its unfortunate but there is still the return leg," Atletico midfielder Koke said. Sociedads intentions were clear as the Basque side sat back and tried to weather Barcelonas pressure and strike on the counter, but goalkeeper Jose Manuel Pinto kicked Carlos Velas shot as the Sociedad striker managed an attempt with Javier Mascherano dragging him to the ground. "It should have been a penalty, and it would have changed the whole outlook of the game," Vela said. "When (the referee) gives Barcelona an extra hand, its nearly impossible to beat them." Sociedad goalie Enaut Zubikarai did well to deny Cesc Fabregas and Lionel Messi before watching a ball skip through the area onto the foot of Sergio Busquets to bounce inside the post in the 44th. Sociedad was reduced to 10 men after Inigo Martinez was shown his second yellow card for protesting the goal. Barcelona exploited the extra space as Alexis Sanchez was played clear into the area in the 60th but shot off the post, with Gorka Elustondo mystifyingly clearing the loose ball back into the area where it came off Zubikarai into goal. "We should have scored more goals after going a man up," Barcelona midfielder Xavi Hernandez said. "Both series look similar, although Madrid looks more in control of theirs." Like Ronaldo, Messi was also muted until Zubikarai saved his leaping volley effort near the close. ' ' '