Philadelphia, PA (My Sportsbook) - Loyal readers, beware. What you are about to read will, in fact, shock you to your very core.

The Players Championship is the fifth major.

Hold the phone. What?

For years, I've railed against the idiotic contention that The Players Championship is the "fifth major." You know why? There aren't five majors, there are four.

The reason this phrase became attached to this event was because the PGA Tour controls zero major championships. Augusta National has the Masters, the USGA takes care of the U.S. Open, the R&A oversees the British Open Championship, and the PGA of America...well, three guesses which major they handle.

If the PGA Tour had no majors, why not create one? Well it doesn't work that way, for starters. Tim Finchem and the tour's higher-ups need to realize they can not just designate something a major.

So why am I saying this is the fifth major?

First, let's determine what would be the fifth in the event that a fifth was needed. I am, in no way, advocating assigning this tournament major status, but if a fifth came into existence, The Players is the clear-cut choice.

What criteria do you have for a major championship? There's strength of field, demanding nature of the course, tradition of the tournament, and the attitude the players take into that particular week.

I searched long and hard for another tournament (outside of the first four majors, of course) to rival it. Believe me, after years of slamming this label, I went up and down the docket looking for something to take the throne.

Came up empty.

The list of contenders was fairly short. Technically, the best field available would be the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship. You never get the top-64 players available in the world rankings due to injuries, or Ernie Els' inability to get past the first round.

Match play is a great barometer of a player's ability. There hasn't been a match-play major since the PGA Championship abandoned the format in 1958. It's a "toughest man wins" philosophy that goes right along with what a major championship should be.

However, I can't in good conscience put a field of 64 in as a major. The Masters field is not full, but 64 is too few.

And the field size matters. Just ask Ben Curtis, Todd Hamilton or Shaun Micheel.

That effectively knocks out the Tour Championship and the two other WGC events. It almost eliminates invitationals like the Memorial, which I'm ruling out because I'm not in love with a major championship where scores are perennially double-digits under par.

If great fields are a criteria, then why not the three leading up to the Tour Championship? Oh yeah, they are the part of the FedEx Cup Playoffs, so the tour won't mess with them

The sleeper in this race became the Wachovia Championship. While only in existence since 2003 (remember, tradition is a part of this), this event has consistently brought the stars out. Tiger started playing the event after hearing such good things from other players about Quail Hollow and the other perks. Sounds like major championship material.

However, the Players Championship gets the duke because of the Stadium Course at the TPC at Sawgrass. While everyone gets fixated on the island green at 17 (it's a bear, just ask Paul Goydos), the course is consistently one of the toughest all year.

The 18th is one of the most demanding final holes in competitive golf. Even the par fives are not gimmes. When the wind is up, as it was on Sunday, only a handful of chaps break par.

Sergio Garcia went on to say Sunday evening that the tournament always has the feel of a major championship. That speaks volumes, because I have not found that to be the case at the Wachovia Championship.

The Players Championship originated in 1974. Who could forget the debut at Sawgrass when Jerry Pate won and pulled then-Commissioner Deane Beaman and architect Pete Dye into the sewage? How about Hal Sutton's "be the right club today" plea in 2000?

Plus, if the tournament already has the reputation of a fifth major, why not keep the insane tradition going?

So for a fleeting moment of weakness, I concede the Players Championship should be the fifth major, if it ever came to it. Thanks goodness it hasn't come, and until it does, do not refer to it as the "fifth major."

Just live with the fact that it could be.

QUESTIONS

1.) What struck you about the finale of the Players Championship?

I think Goydos caught a bit of bad luck with his tee ball in the playoff, but where he lost it was the third shot on 18 in regulation. He acknowledged he "chunked" the pitch shot and that could've been nerves.

2.) What happens to Goydos from here?

I think he's the flavor of the month for a while, kind of like Woody Austin after the PGA Championship and Presidents Cup. Goydos is a single father, and is also outgoing and gracious. He congratulated Sergio on his great shot in the playoff while walking to the green. This is mere moments after splashing a chance at his biggest win ever. Here's the moral of the story - be a nice guy and people will like you. That's how I did it.

3.) Do you give any love to Sergio?

Absolutely. The guy was the 131st-ranked putter on the PGA Tour heading into last week. He stood over a six-footer to give himself a chance at a playoff. That's gutsy. My beef with Garcia has always been his behavior, not his talent. When he complains about bad breaks and develops a "poor me" attitude, that shows a lack of maturity. Tee to green, he's the second best player behind Woods. If his putting comes around, Garcia will finally get that major.

4.) Don't you owe Annika Sorenstam an apology?

Sort of. Two weeks ago, I shared my disappointment that Sorenstam did not play in the same field as Lorena Ochoa at the SemGroup Championship. After winning the Stanford International Pro-Am, she took last week off. Then she beat the daylights out of Ochoa and the field at the Michelob Ultra Open at Kingsmill. Kudos to you, Annika. You proved me wrong. Remember, I predicted she would surpass Ochoa by year's end. Ochoa's got five wins and a major to Sorenstam's three and zero majors. There's a lot of time left.

5.) What is the current state of things, with the Ryder Cup less than four months away?

The U.S. has Tiger Woods, Mickelson, Furyk, Boo Weekley, Stewart Cink, Anthony Kim and fading Steve Stricker. That leaves a group of Scott Verplank, Justin Leonard, J.B. Holmes, Sean O'Hair, Woody Austin and maybe Goydos as Paul Azinger's picks. Garcia made his way on to the European Team, but at this time, Nick Faldo will have to use two picks on a group including Luke Donald, Darren Clarke, Colin Montgomerie, Paul Casey and Ian Poulter. Graeme McDowell, Nick Dougherty and Soren Hansen currently occupy spots. Faldo will hope that changes.

RANKINGS

1.) Tiger Woods

2.) Phil Mickelson - a final round disaster on Sunday.

3.) Sergio Garcia - exactly the opposite of Mickelson.

4.) Ernie Els

5.) Adam Scott

6.) Vijay Singh

7.) Trevor Immelman

8.) K.J. Choi

9.) Rory Sabbatini

10.) Stewart Cink

CHAMPIONS

1.) Bernhard Langer - was in the mix for the Players title. There are rumblings that Faldo could like him as a possible pick. Taking a guy who will be 51 would be risky.

2.) Scott Hoch - runner-up at the FedEx Kinko's Classic two weeks ago.

3.) Loren Roberts

4.) Fred Funk

5.) Tom Watson

6.) Jay Haas

7.) Denis Watson - consistent winner on the Champions Tour.

8.) R.W. Eaks

9.) Brad Bryant

10.) Mark Wiebe

LPGA

1.) Lorena Ochoa

2.) Annika Sorenstam - gap is closing.

3.) Paula Creamer - losing that awful playoff to Sorenstam, then coming back to win a playoff against Juli Inkster last week is an impressive showing.

4.) Karrie Webb

5.) Suzann Pettersen

6.) Cristie Kerr

7.) Juli Inkster

8.) Stacy Prammanasudh

9.) Morgan Pressel - not doing much at the moment.

10.) Jeong Jang

RANDOM THOUGHTS

- Charley Hoffman tossing his putter in the water this week was the highlight of the season. People will criticize him for lack of professionalism, but this game is hard. I snapped a sand-wedge over my knee once and never thought twice about it. Frustrations are high out there.

- Sincere condolences to Jeff Maggert, whose brother was killed in a plane crash last week.

- Colt Knost won on the Nationwide Tour on Sunday. He reminds me of Ryan Moore. Knost enjoyed an excellent amateur career and will win on the PGA Tour.

- Non-golf thought - Like most of you, I can't live without my cell phone. I don't have a house phone, so I was a little displeased when I had to get a new one thanks to my new enemy, a puddle. Cell phones are incredible tools, but to lose a substantial amount of money to something so elaborate as a collection of rain water frustrates me.