"This might have more potential than Jackie Robinson breaking into baseball because no one will ever turn their head again when a black man walks to the first tee."

Lee Elder made those remarks 10 years ago, after Tiger Woods demolished the field in his first Masters as a professional.

But while Woods' impact on golf has been huge, the racial breakdown at the top level remains the same.

No black golfers have followed Woods onto the PGA Tour (The only other black is Vijay Singh, who is Fijian, and he has been a tour member since 1993). The situation is similar on the LPGA Tour. Aside from Andia Wins- low's appearance in the Ginn Club and Resorts Open last year, there are no blacks.

"I'm sure the expectation is out there that there would be more Tiger Woods on the PGA Tour or LPGA Tour, but once again, golf is a game of tremendous skills," said Joe Louis Barrow Jr., executive director of The First Tee program.

"It takes a great deal of perseverance and tenacity and will to pursue it. All of those have to fall in line in order for someone to pursue a career at the PGA Tour or LPGA Tour level."

Barrow then quoted Earl Woods, Tiger's late father.

"When I first took over this position, he said, 'Give these programs time. It took me 20 years to create Tiger Woods,' " Barrow said.

The First Tee, which has introduced golf to more than 1.5 million participants, will be 10 years old in November.

About 50 percent of participants come from diverse backgrounds, of which, 22 percent to 24 percent are blacks. That contrasts with a National Golf Federation study in 2003 showing that only about 16 percent of all players were from diverse backgrounds.

While Barrow said he would expect minority participation to be greater, he believes he is seeing sustained interest.

"As golf plays a meaningful role in their life and the lives of their siblings and becomes more of an American sport, the numbers will grow," he said. "As the numbers grow, you'll see those who excel to the highest level will grow."

Woods, whose blowout victory in 1997 came 22 years after Elder became the first black to compete in the Masters, admitted he was disappointed with the numbers at the top.

"Then again, it's a matter of getting enough players. You've got to have a base big enough," Woods said before the 2005 U.S. Open.

Renee Powell, one of only three blacks to play on the

LPGA Tour, said it's not right to expect one person - Woods - to be the Pied Piper for everyone. Plus, she said, society doesn't change that fast, especially in a sport in which minorities have not always had access.

"You don't pick up golf today and become proficient at it tomorrow. It's a tough sport. It will kick you in the butt," said Powell, honored Tuesday with Rolex's first For the Love of the Game award.

Champions Tour player Allen Doyle, who started a First Tee program in his hometown of LaGrange, Ga., said getting more blacks into the leadership levels - recruiting, coaching, overseeing - is key.

"The face of golf hasn't changed yet. My hope is it's a work in progress," Doyle said.

One problem is money.

"Ironically, Tiger's standard of excellence is part of the problem," wrote Orin Starn, a cultural anthropology professor at Duke who is writing a book about golf and American society.

"Training a top golfer now demands specialized intensive instruction from a young age, in the way of figure skating or gymnastics. Although the black and Latino middle class has grown, comparatively few minority families can afford to send talented children to the expensive private golf academies that have sprung up to manufacture the future's professional stars."

Tim O'Neal, a black golfer who is on the Nationwide Tour, a step below the PGA Tour, for the third straight year, said progress always will be tied to financial support.

"It is sad," O'Neal said. "But that's the nature of how golf is. It all comes down to finances."

Barrow, though, was happy to see programs such as the ACE Grant program, implemented by the American Junior Golf Association, offer financial assistance to qualified players.

"I don't have an answer that there will be X, Y, Z African- Americans at the PGA Tour level in one, five or 10 years, but I do feel confident there will be more players over time, because there will be more players from a diverse background who have a love for the game and a passion for the game," Barrow said. "If I didn't see young people wanting to play high school golf or develop the skill set to play junior championships, then I'd be concerned about it. But the shift is starting to occur."

PGA Tour player Paul -Azinger said those 8-year-olds who were watching Woods make history at Augusta will be 28 in 10 years - an age when pros are entering their prime.

"It will be interesting to see what happens," Azinger said.

Lasting impact

Tiger Woods' historic 12-shot victory in the Masters at Augusta National in 1997 impacted everything from television ratings and purses to the length of courses and minority involvement in the game. A look at then, and now:In the pipeline

A sampling of black golfers who might be on course for future success:

• Kevin Hall. He not only was the first black to qualify for a golf scholarship at Ohio State, he was the school's first deaf golfer. In 2004, he won the Big Ten Conference tournament by 11 shots. Hall, 24, continues to play the mini-tours after failing at the first stage of the PGA Tour qualifying school last fall.

• Tim O'Neal. The Former Georgia state amateur champion, 33, is tied for 57th on the Nationwide Tour money list. He missed getting his PGA Tour card by one shot at the 2004 qualifying school. He has won more than $368,000 as a pro.

• Andia Winslow. The niece of Pro Football Hall of Famer Kellen Winslow received a sponsor's invitation to play in an LPGA event last year. Wins- low, 24, missed getting her LPGA Tour card and is playing on the Cactus Tour in Arizona.

• Cheyenne Woods. The niece of Tiger Woods helped the Xavier (Ariz.) College Prep team win its 25th state golf title in November. She is 16.

Tuned in

43 million is the estimated number of viewers who watched all or part of the 1997 Masters broadcast - making it the most-watched golf broadcast in history. Woods' 2001 final round was second all time, with 40.1 million viewers. His fourth Masters win, in 2005, which featured a playoff with Chris DiMarco in prime time, was seen by an estimated 35.9 million viewers - the third-most watched Masters final round of all time.

He said it

"Once I won the Masters, yeah, my life did change. Peopleare starting to recognize me when I go into a mall or go outto dinner or hang out in public. . . . That's been thebiggest adjustment"

Tiger Woods, June 1997, two months after his historic Masters win.

Broken records

PGA Tour purses

1996: $70 million

2007: $273 million

125th on money list

1996: $167,852, Dickey Pride

2006: $860,898, Darren Clarke

30th on money list

1996: $604,382, Duffy Waldorf

2006: $2,256,326, Ben Curtis

Broken records

Woods broke or tied 26 Masters records in 1997. Some highlights:

• Lowest 72-hole score: 270, 18 under par, 70-66-65-69

• Youngest champion: 21 years

• Widest margin of victory: 12 shots

• Low score, last 54 holes: 200, 16 under par, 66-65-69

• Largest lead, first 54 holes: nine shots

• Low score, middle 36 holes: 131, 13 under par, 66-65

• Most strokes under par, second nine holes: 16 under par, 30-32-33-33

• Most strokes under par, final 63 holes: 22

• Worst start by champion, first nine holes: 40, 4 over par

• Winner in first professional start in Masters

• Most 3s by champion: 26, 14 birdies, two eagles, 10 pars

• Under par, Amen Corner, four rounds: 7; 2 under at No. 11, 1 under at No. 12, 4 under at No. 13

Caddie's view

"I sensed something special the first time I saw him play."

Mike "Fluff" Cowan, who caddied for Woods his first three years on the PGA Tour.

Course length

7,445 yards: Augusta National today

6,925 yards: Augusta National, 1997

Did you know?

Woods had zero three-putts for the week en route to his Masters victory in 1997.

Forward thinking

"Think Tigermania is at a fever pitch? Wait until he wins the green jacket next week in Augusta. Augusta is made for Woods. His combination of length, high, soft-landing iron shots and delicate touch around the green are the classic building blocks for Masters victories."

Sports Illustrated, predicting big things to come in April 1997.

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