Last week when I covered how much money college students need for personal items and entertainment, I alluded to the countless options for having fun in college while avoiding credit card debt and frivolous spending.

Money Smart Life has pulled together a broad list of five ways to have fun in college on the cheap. Truth be told, it isn't hard to do; no matter what size your university is, there are bound to be loads of low cost entertainment opportunities. The list, compiled by Money Smart Life, includes many of the old college standbys, but features a few new ways to get your kicks on a budget.

I can totally get behind their suggestion of a Wii-party -- complete with age appropriate drinks; I spent a good portion of my junior year schooling my neighbors in Tiger Woods Golf without spending more than a fiver for the night.

Tiger Woods is sitting out of the game of golf for the rest of the year following reconstructive surgery this week, and his knee is not the only thing that is hurting. Companies dependent upon his presence at golf tournaments to boost attendance are going to be hurting too. Tiger's absence is going to cost sponsors an estimated $10 million.

The companies Tiger promotes, like Nike and Buick will be hurt because their payoff comes when he's out in the public eye. Nike depends on the visibility of their brand on what he's wearing and Buick puts their logo on his golf bag. No Tiger, no visibility. The sponsors also lose out on their chance for additional promotion when he wins a tournament.

Decreased attendance at PGA Tour events means the event organizers lose revenue from merchandise sales. Television networks lose advertising revenue because the number of projected viewers goes down, making the advertising time worth less.

The sport of golf and companies with revenues tied to it will undoubtedly be hurt by Tiger's hiatus from golf. They can only hope that this is just temporary, and that Tiger will be back next season and ready to play. If he decides not to return to the sport (or can't because he doesn't heal well), there will be an even bigger impact to the sport and the companies he endorses. Let's all cross our fingers and hope Tiger has a successful recovery and comeback. The sport depends on it.

Tracy L. Coenen, CPA, MBA, CFE performs fraud examinations and financial investigations for her company Sequence Inc. Forensic Accounting, and is the author of Essentials of Corporate Fraud.

The essence of sport is competition. There was a day when The Masters was as compelling a golfing event as one could imagine. Those were the days of Nicklaus and Palmer, Weiskopf and Cook, Snead and Hogan. For many years, several golfers would share the top rank of the sport, almost guaranteeing that one of them would have to drill a 30' putt or stick an 8 iron to pull away for a one-stroke victory.

Now, however, Tiger Woods has drawn so far beyond the pack that such drama has become an infrequent thing. All too often, Tiger has events in his bag midway through the back nine, and his minions scramble for second-place money. The consequence is that golf as a spectator sport has been diminished.

The television ratings reflect the problem. When Tiger plays, viewership jumps like a duffer sinking an eagle. When he doesn't, it drops like one of my drives over a water hazard. Ask the average viewer to name more than one golfer, and he'll likely come up with a name from a previous generation, a Fuzzy Zoeller or Ben Crenshaw.

Even Tiger could an arch enemy this weekend at Augusta, someone to push him harder, someone to add spice to events like the Masters. Perhaps he won't win in a cakewalk, but the odds are heavily in his favor. Oh, for the days of Jack and Gary Player, or Seve and the Shark.

At least the Azaleas remain glorious.

Tiger Woods is known as one of the smartest and most disciplined athletes in the history of the world and, given that, he might have what it takes to be a successful investor.

In an interview with CNBC, Woods said that he is long Google and has been for awhile. He's also partnered with Joe Louis and Ernie Els on a resort in the Bahamas, and has been impressed with the development of Dubai since he first played there in 2001.

What's interesting about Woods is that, as busy as he is with all his endorsement deals, new family, and golf, he sounds like he's pretty on top of his financial life.

There's a lesson in there: if Tiger Woods has time to follow his money personally and not put all his faith in an advisor, so does pretty much everyone else.