The end of 2009 in just a few days also marks another decade behind us, and golf fans were certainly given quite an interesting ride during that time. While the most recent story regarding the world's number one golfer will be in the minds of fans everywhere for years, one must not overlook the other notable (and maybe forgotten) headlines over the past ten years (source: TheStar.com):

2000 Tiger Woods becomes the first player since Lee Trevino in 1971 to capture the Triple Crown: the U.S. Open, British Open and Canadian Open in the same season.

2001 Annika Sorenstam becomes the first female golfer ever to shoot a 59 in competition.

2002 Twelve-year-old Michelle Wie qualifies for the LPGA Tour's season-opening Takefuji Classic.

2003 Mike Weir is the first Canadian to win the Masters.

2004 Vijay Singh wins nine events and dislodges Tiger Woods as the world's No.1-ranked golfer.

2005 Tiger Woods wins Masters and British Open and predicts he will "retire sooner than people think."

2006 Canadian Stephen Ames wins TPC at Sawgrass by six strokes over Retief Goosen.

2007 Stephen Ross resigns under pressure after 18 years as executive director of the Royal Canadian Golf Association.

2008 Brampton-born Steve Duplantis, a popular PGA Tour caddy, killed when struck by a taxi in Del Mar, Calif.

Most of these headlines will be remembered by even the most casual golf fans while others may be forgotten over time. Regardless, the past ten years have been a wonderful time for professional golf and for those of us who choose to cover this great game via blogs and the media. Speaking of which, perhaps the biggest contribution or headline to the game of golf is the advent of social media and how the lines of fans and athletes have been blurred. Never before have we as the general public been able to access our favorite athletes, yet the jury is still out on both the positive and negative aspects of this accessibility.

Time will show what is in store for the game of golf in the coming years, and we should all be in for quite a ride if the past decade is any indication of the future.