I took my sister-in-law to the airport last week and one of our very prominent pro golfers was in the car ahead. He unloaded his clubs and a big suitcase from the trunk and kissed his wife goodbye, and gave her a long hug.

Not an unfamiliar scene at any airport or involving any couple. But this had to be a bit different, maybe a lot different.

What were they thinking during those goodbyes?

She wasn't going - was she thinking about the ladies that troll every PGA Tour golf course? He was going - was he worrying about what she was thinking, knowing he's a good boy but now there are grounds for suspicion?

Tiger has invaded other households, I thought. The PGA Tour, which has marital bliss (for the most part) among its outstanding ethical behavior (for the most part,) suddenly faces the awful realization that the scrutiny is about to get hot.

Here they come, boys: TMZ, People, National Enquirer and the network gossipmongers. Your lives are about to change and you'll have to make sure everyone knows that's your wife at dinner with you.

You'll also have to continually reassure your left-at-home sweetie that your evenings are spend practicing putting in the motel room rather than having a few pops with the boys.

Tour players aren't saints, as we all know, but the hot chasings of the old days were mostly back in the old days. For the most part, today's players - handsome and rich though they may be - are a reasonably sedate, mature group that understands that their exemptions depend on continual good play.

Yes, a few cat around. Adam Scott admits his slump may have come from chasing the ladies, for instance. But you don't hear too much and, for those on the periphery like golf writers, you don't see too much.

The biggest near-scandal I can remember came from a series of anonymous notes that Tour wives received, all claiming that their husband had something on the side. It was widely believed that the writer was the estranged wife of a middling player and, as you can well imagine, created a lot of problems back home for both the saints and sinners.

Other than that, it's been pretty harmless and, in cases such as John Daly and Jan Stephenson, goofy. (Daly's woes are well-known, but you may have to be reminded that Stephenson was (among other things) married to two men at the same time.

Not that this affects us, other than having a fresh dose of Tiger each day. We'll get tired of that soon enough, but more probably is on the way. The hounds are on the PGA Tour's trail and it's going to take more than loving hugs to prove that you're being a good boy.

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Good for the LPGA - they got a new tournament. It's in San Diego in March and will pay $1.7 million.

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Warning to participants in next week's Gate Senior: the creeks will be ice-slick. They were fast for this week's qualifier and pro Bruce Mohler told one contestant, "Wait 'til Monday."

- Fred Seely is editor of Golf News.