Most days, even in the winter, golfers will gather in the pro shop at Cool Springs Golf and Family Recreation Center in Bethel Park, where they talk about their games and maybe debate the issues of the day.

Who is the greatest golfer ever? Who is the best athlete of the past decade? Who has been the hottest topic for the past three weeks?

In most corners, especially under the television set in the Cool Springs pro shop, the answer is the same: Tiger Woods.

"We usually have the TV tuned to the Golf Channel," James Blosel, assistant general manager at Cool Springs, said last night. "But lately, Tiger Woods has been all over the news, and [the golfers] all stop and watch."

Yesterday, Mr. Woods was selected as the Athlete of the Decade by members of The Associated Press in a vote that recognized his performance on the golf course despite the sex scandal that has rocked the pedestal upon which he had been placed.

For 10 incomparable years, no one ruled a sport like Mr. Woods. He won 64 tournaments, including 12 major championships. He won more than one-third of all the tournaments he played this decade, and he did his best work in the biggest events.

He received 56 of the 142 votes cast in the past month by sports editors at U.S. newspapers that are members of the AP. More than half of the ballots were returned after the Nov. 27 car accident outside Mr. Woods' Florida home, which ignited the firestorm of infidelity stories.

Lance Armstrong, a cancer survivor who won the Tour de France six times this decade, finished second with 33 votes. He was followed by Roger Federer, who has won more Grand Slam singles titles than any other man, with 25 votes.

Record-setting Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps came in fourth with 13 votes, followed by New England quarterback Tom Brady (six) and world-record sprinter Usain Bolt (four). Five other athletes received one vote apiece.

Mr. Woods might have topped the list of athletes, but there has definitely been a fall from grace. Mr. Blosel said he's already noticed it in the conversation of the golfers in the pro shop.

"A lot of serious golfers really respect Tiger Woods and his ability to play before this all happened, but some aspects of his personality, the way he kept people away and wasn't that friendly, that's all they're talking about now," Mr. Blosel said. "They think he's two-faced. He wasn't the person that he presented himself to be. It's disappointing.

"All the kids, when they come in here, they all want to be Tiger Woods, they pretend they're Tiger Woods, because he's the best. It's sad to see a role model that was so big and so powerful turn out to be like this."

To most, Mr. Blosel said, it isn't the infidelity as much as it is the hypocrisy.

"I was never a fan of Tiger Woods," said Chris Boyan, 36, of Baldwin, who was hitting some drives at the center's range. "His talent as a golfer is unbelievable, but his attitude is not. I've witnessed it. He's not very nice. ... He may be better than everybody, but don't act like it."

Mr. Boyan said he was more impressed with Mr. Federer's domination of men's tennis. And on the golf course, he prefers John Daly.

"I've been a fan of John Daly's for quite some time," Mr. Boyan said. "He's got a lot of shortcomings in his life, but he's always been open about it."

At the Giant Eagle in Green Tree, where the checkout stands are filled with tabloid headlines of Mr. Woo ds' scandal, Teri Hicks, 26, of Crafton, said she does not golf or watch the game. But she knows who Tiger Woods is.

"Everybody's entitled to a mistake, but when you keep doing something, it's more than a mistake," she said. "These athletes and politicians don't understand that people do look up to them.

"I used to like him, but not anymore. I liked him because he was a role model and he gave back through charitable work. He was a good role model for African-American kids, that they could do anything no matter from what background they came from."

Miss Hicks mulled over the best athletes of the past decade and found the list wanting.

"What about Serena and Venus?" she said of the tennis-playing Williams sisters.

Mr. Blosel agreed that Mr. Woods is an obvious pick for Athlete of the Decade -- though he would have gone with Mr. Phelps. And on the golf course, he said, he favors more approachable, down-to-earth guys.

"My favorite is Rocco Mediate [of Greensburg] or Phil Mickelson," Mr. Blosel said. "I met Zach Johnson out at Oakmont in 2007, and he was very, very nice. So he's someone I root for and I like to see do well."

Still, Mr. Blosel said he believes Mr. Woods can muster up a return.

"He'll still have some fans. He's still going to be the man to beat and people will strive to be like him on the playing field," he said. "But this isn't going to leave him anytime soon. People are going to talk about it, and they want answers.

"People always used to say, 'Tiger, you da man!' Now it's going to be, 'Tiger, you da cheater.' "

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