Tiger Woods served notice yesterday that going overseas every other year for a Ryder Cup or Presidents Cup is not something he plans to do indefinitely.

The reigning British and US Open champion and two-time PGA Championship winner said it is becoming too much to ask for a top US player to travel overseas every other year to represent his nation.

"Where the problem is going to lie is that some of the younger guys are going to make the team for about 15 years or so," Woods said. "But if they play for 15 years, that means they will be on the team 15 straight years.

"Half of those years are going to be going overseas because of the Ryder Cup or Presidents Cup. Half those years you're going to have to go overseas. And that's asking a lot."

Woods (24), is the only current "young guy" likely to be good enough long enough to have such a problem. David Duval (28), is the only other US player under 30 at Gainesville, Virginia, this week who has played Presidents Cup.

Woods has already gone to Spain for a 1997 Ryder Cup loss and Australia for a 1998 Presidents Cup defeat. And because he is golf's main drawing card at events and on television, any event without him is likely to be diminished.

That could have a chilling effect on the 2002 Presidents Cup, which PGA officials plan to play in South Africa. Japan also has interest in staging the event.

Regarding going to South Africa, the word "yes" never passed Woods' lips.

"We need to focus on this week first and make sure we get through this before we focus on South Africa," Woods said. "As of right now, from what I have been told, South Africa is not a done deal as far as a site yet. Who knows?"

An ever-expanding golf world could drain Woods, especially with the recent addition of the World Golf Championships dictating at least one overseas journey for Americans. And there is a move to add golf to the Olympic line-up.

Where Woods goes, at least for now, will dictate the fate of global golf events as it already has done US events, rendering events with him golden and those without him something less.

The Robert Trent Jones Golf Club is staging the fourth Presidents Cup matches, which start today.

Golfers from eight nations comprise the International team. While the names and homelands might change over the next decade, the US fears having to spread around the world to give everyone's homeland a chance.