So I’m watching the first round of the Bridgestone Invitational at Firestone Country Club Thursday and I’m thinking, “Wouldn’t it be ironic if Tiger Woods makes his long-awaited comeback to the PGA Tour and has to watch Adam Scott win the title with his old caddie, Steve Williams, on Scott’s bag?”

OK, it’s still Thursday when I’m writing this and I know that this scenario has little chance of playing out. But wouldn’t it be fun if it did?

And wouldn’t it be even more fun if Tiger picks up his game a little and is in the final pairing with Scott?

Yeah, I’m dreaming, but what the heck good is a mind if you don’t use it for a little fantasizing now and then? So let’s do it; let’s put Tiger and Scott in the final pairing Sunday.

As for Tiger, he looks good in his first round back. That’s great. I hope he regains his form, and I hope the guys who have been playing so well while Tiger was away won’t panic and lose theirs.

This golf is a funny game, only it’s not for laughs. I often find it easier to cry during a round than to laugh.

Take my last round, for instance. That was on Thursday, too, before I watched the last few holes of the first round of the Bridgestone Invitational.

You think there’s drama in a PGA Tour event? I’m telling you those guys on TV don’t know what a piece of cake they have compared with me and the rest of the Gates Four Gangsome.

This Thursday round started out a little differently from the ones we’re accustomed to.

Normally, a few of us usually gather for a hot breakfast at Roosters, home of the world’s greatest country link sausage. With a 10:30 tee-off, this breakfast is perfect for getting us off the golf course and into the snack bar at Gates Four for a 2 p.m. lunch.

Yes, we are creatures of habit. And, yes, we do eat a lot, as well as often.

Anyway, this particular Thursday I’m paired with Puddin’, Hec and Jack the Lipper. Only problem is, it’s 10:15, 15 minutes before our tee-off, and I’m sitting in a dentist’s chair seven miles away from the golf course.

Now that’s panic. You got the nerve to tell your dentist to hurry up because you’re due on the first tee?

Yeah, me neither.

Anyway, I break a few speed laws, roll through a few stop signs, sneak through a couple of yellow lights, and I’m pulling into the parking lot at Gates Four at 10:30 on the nose.

I shouldn’t have worried. That Gangsome bunch is never going to leave me out of the pairings as long as we’re playing for a couple of bucks. Those guys know easy money, and I promise you I am figured into their budgets.

I had no idea what to expect, other than more of the same ugly game that I’m living with these days. But I had a little magic going Thursday. My old Payne Stewart SeeMore putter was crazy hot.

I parred the first three holes without hitting a green in regulation and I was so excited that when I did reach a green, I three-putted that sucker. Shot 41 on that side and had to fix only one ball mark.

On the back nine, it was pretty much the same. Although I not only hit the green on the 16th hole, but ran in a 10-foot putt for my first birdie in a month.

Actually, I’m not sure what I shot, because I really had a couple of rotten holes on the back nine. But that was one stunned crowd in JP’s Snack Bar when I actually collected some green stuff for a change.

I have a standing thing going with a buddy in Reidsville as to who can make the most birdies during the calendar year. I won last year because he had shoulder surgery and I actually led him 31-28 a few weeks ago, but he’s been on a tear and I’ve been, well not so much on a tear. Last count I had was him leading 57-33.

Yeah, it’s a tough game.