Woods said he would not start his 2008 season until he defends his title in the Buick Invitational, making it the third consecutive year he has skipped the winners-only Mercedes-Benz Championship at Kapalua.

Woods, who won at Kapalua in 2000 and has never finished lower than a tie for eighth, said he wanted to spend time at home over the next five weeks before gearing up for the new season.

"I enjoy that time off," he said after winning the Target World Challenge, his first event after a 10-week break. "Kapalua does a fantastic job, and I've played well out there. I just enjoy the time at home with my family."

The PGA Tour has opened its season at Kapalua every year since 1999, but it has yet to get all the winners from the previous years.

Phil Mickelson has not played at Kapalua since 2001 and isn't expected to play this year, although tournament officials have not heard from him. British Open champion Padraig Harrington also is skipping the Mercedes because January is when the Irishman takes his one big break during the season. He will start at Abu Dhabi on the European tour.

"We're disappointed that our event will be missing Woods, Mickelson and Harrington," Kapalua vice president Gary Planos said. "But there are no guarantees with a field, even when it's champions only. The Mercedes-Benz Championship still has 32 great champions playing here, and everyone at Kapalua can't wait to watch the PGA Tour on Jan. 3."

Woods first missed the season-opener in 2003 when he was recovering from knee surgery, and he won the Buick Invitational at Torrey Pines in his first tournament back.

He has started at Torrey Pines the last two years, winning both times.

For several players, they will have two weeks off before the 2008 season begins. Jim Furyk said a lack of a true offseason makes it tough to drum up interest for Opening Day in golf.

"I feel bad for the tournament, bad for the sponsors," said Furyk, who has a home at Kapalua. "But I'm not upset with a player. They make decisions where they want to play. I'm a player, so I'm going to protect the players. They need to play a schedule they're comfortable with. Tiger and Phil play enough that the fans get to see them."

PGA Tour spokesman Ty Votaw said he would rather see all the top players at Kapalua.

"It's a negative they're not playing," he said. "The positive is they have a good field without them in it. We have 47 tournaments, and they can't play them all. Last year you had people like Will MacKenzie make an impact at Mercedes, and this year there will be someone like that emerge."

But it won't be Woods, the No. 1 attraction in golf.