When Tiger Woods announced he would return to competitive play at the Masters Tournament in Augusta this year, it ended a torrent of speculation about what the game's biggest name would do after becoming embroiled in a sex scandal. Golf probably needs Woods more than any other major sport needs a single superstar. Not only does Woods drive television ratings, but his brand sets the tone for the sport from the highest levels down to beginners.

NBC golf analyst Johnny Miller has been observing the entire drama, and he joined ESPN Radio in Chicago to discuss Woods' return.

Does Miller see Woods either missing the cut or winning the Masters?
Miller: Let's say if in the first round he shoots 70 or 69, 68, he's the guy to beat. With all the nervousness — and he hasn't played for a long time — if he happens to throw in a 74 or 75, he might be in trouble.

I don't know how much you can expect from him, but he is Tiger Woods. The scrutiny is going to be off the charts, but like you said, if they don't allow Entertainment Tonight type crowd to come in with all the helicopters and everything else watching every move he makes, he might be all right.

He does need to post some rounds. There's a lot of differences between practicing and actually posting a number, and you do that in tournaments. I'm not saying he couldn't tee it up until Thursday morning. He never hit a ball and still might win knowing him. But I like his odds better if he gets a chance to move into the thing smoothly with a few rounds under his belt.

How does Miller think other competitors will receive Woods when he first walks in?
Miller: There's a lot of people that are probably disappointed in Tiger, I'm sure. He knows he's injured himself and the game and his family.

We are very forgiving people in America, to an amazing point. He has done some things with going to the rehab, that Gentle Path, and this other one he's been to. He's trying, and maybe he's made some real good commitments to his wife Elin saying, "I will never cheat on you ever again. You watch."

He made those real firm commitments to her, and even to the public. Maybe he will say something similar, "I have the discipline to do this. I just need to do it."

People are going to give him a chance. They might not give him a next chance if he messes up, but I think it was the sheer amount of girlfriends he had, if you want to call them girlfriends,  that really freaked everybody out. Golf is sort of a gentleman's game, and I don't know how he kept it all so quiet to all the insiders. It's hard to think that all of these guys said they didn't know a thing about it. The bottom line is, I'm ready to welcome him back.

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To answer your question, they're going to be very relieved to see Tiger Woods back. The game of golf, he's sort of the spoon that stirs the soup. We need him big time even though this has not been good. He can make something good out of it if he makes good commitments and makes some good changes in his life.

Will Woods be heckled by any members of the gallery?
Miller: I do think that after a guy has had three, four, five beers on the course one out of a hundred, or two out of a hundred, there's going to be some people that are going to say something. They might get kicked out of the tournament, but I'd be surprised if they do it at Augusta because they'll kick them out for almost no infraction. The gallery's infraction, they don't allow that.

At one of the normal events, there's always going to be a guy who's had a few, and I guess there's some pent up resentment over what's happened and everything else, and they're going to say something. It might not be anything big. It's not like an NBA game. From golf's standpoint, it'll be a big deal. In reality, I think most people are happy to see him back.

Will Woods answer questions from the media about any topic other than golf?
Miller: He's never really opened up. He had that one interview in Esquire magazine and let his guard down, and it was not a good interview, and he said some things he probably shouldn't have said. But I guess he made a promise to himself, "I will never let my real feelings show to the press ever again," and he hasn't.

I wish he was a little more real and a little more from the heart instead of from the head. I'd like to see him say what is truly in his heart and what he believes at this point. His little statement was good. I take it and give him a chance, but I'd like to see him let down a little bit and give us the real deal.

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