Whatever the case, his absence is a bigger blow to this tournament than when he skips the first playoff event.
What hurt the perception even more was the absence of the next three guys behind him in the world ranking. Phil Mickelson played only the first three years at Kapalua. He wants time off to spend with his family, but it's no secret he is not a fan of Kapalua and the wind, saying it gets him into bad swing habits.
Padraig Harrington is from Ireland and takes January as his one month away from golf. Sergio Garcia is a past winner at Kapalua, but the schedule didn't work for him. He lives in Spain and plays next week in Abu Dhabi.
The tour is said to be looking at Wailea, about an hour to the east on Maui, where the weather is more predictable. It might have more options for Mercedes' clients to play golf, but it doesn't have the caliber of course that Kapalua offers. Players often criticize the tour for not playing on the best courses available; this could be one of those example.
"I love coming here," said Stewart Cink, one of four players on the tour's policy board. "I like playing here. I think this is a fun course to play. It's different and a challenge in its own way. I would not want to move it. But it's a business decision, I'm sure."
Some players believe the tour is looking at a move to the mainland to make it easier to travel.
"If you're trying to get one or two players, you're going to have to move it to San Diego or Orlando," said Justin Leonard, referring to Mickelson and Woods. "And even then, I don't think those guys would play. It's nice to start here."
Moving to the mainland also would leave the Sony Open in Honolulu on an island, such as it is.
The wild card in all this is Mercedes. It's sponsorship expires in 2010 - as does the tour's contract with Kapalua - and the automaker has been quiet this week in casual conversations with tournament and resort officials.
Finchem said it wasn't only Kapalua under review.
"The way we like to believe you will get better is to constantly challenge what you are doing and ask the question, 'Can you do it better?"' he said. "It doesn't necessarily mean we will do anything particularly different."
Most players would tell him it's pretty good as it is.
But maybe in these economic conditions, it's not always about the players.
