March 20 -- First off, as embarrassing as it may be to some, it's time we as a nation admit the obvious: streaking is back, proving once and for all the old adage, "Everything old is nude again." The phenomenon "peeked" in 1974 when: Robert Opel, by day a fully-clothed photographer and art gallery owner, dashed across the Oscars stage in the buff, prompting host David Niven to ad lib, "Probably the only laugh that man will ever get in his life is by stripping off and showing his shortcomings;" and Ray Stevens rode "The Streak" -- his ditty about the country bumpkin who, whenever he'd see the titular character flashing around town, would repeatedly (and belatedly) implore his beloved, "Don't look, Ethel!" -- to the top of the pop music charts.

Tiger's run may be impressive, but how does it rank among the great streaks of all-time? (Getty Images)

Ethel may want to keep her head turned because streaking is hot again, courtesy of Tiger Woods and the Houston Rockets. The latter had its 22-game win streak -- second best in NBA history -- come to a screeching halt Tuesday night in a blowout loss to Boston. The former is at five straight PGA Tour wins (seven, if you include non-Tour events) and counting after yet another must-see moment Sunday at Bay Hill.

Let's see where Woods' current run stacks up in GMT's exclusive list of the greatest streaks of all time:

5. (tie) Cal Ripken and A.C. Green

Both own the consecutive games played record in their respective sports, Ripken in Major League Baseball and Green in the NBA. The former played 2,632 games in a row for the Baltimore Orioles, supplanting Lou Gehrig as baseball's all-time iron man. Green got minutes in 1,192 straight for the Lakers, Suns, Mavs, and Heat. Ripken's is more cherished, but Green's achievement is far more unfathomable. For one thing, his encompassed 15 seasons in NBA paint where you were never more than a Bill Laimbeer elbow away from sucking chicken soup through a straw for three months. And those were the days of vigilante justice. Unless you a) could actually prove the bone had broken through the skin or b) were Michael Jordan, you weren't getting a whistle. It took a real man to play under the basket like Green did. But as remarkable an accomplishment as it was, it's not even the most jaw-dropping distinction of Green's career. Stay tuned.

4. Frank Ricard

Will Ferrell's character in "Old School" doesn't have time to party with his buddies at the Mitch Martin Freedom Festival because he has a pretty nice, little Saturday planned with his wife. "We're going to Home Depot. Buy some wallpaper, maybe some flooring. Stuff like that. Maybe Bed, Bath, and Beyond. I don't know." A couple of hits on the beer bong later and Frank's in full moon, interrupting the Snoop concert in the backyard to tell everyone the streak route will go through the Quad and into the gymnasium. The fact that no one followed made it all the more impressive.

Ferrell realized early in his acting career how much money you could make by stripping down to your skivvies, or less. He showed his true colors in an SNL skit when he showed up for an office meeting wearing nothing but American flag bikini briefs and a cutoff t-shirt. He was topless when he gave Veronica Corningstone two tickets to the gun show in "Anchorman." His whities weren't very tightie when he tried to snuff out the invisible fire in "Talladega Nights." And he went to breakfast in nothing but a bath towel because he thought his partner in "Blades of Glory" would like to see what a skater's body really looks like. Sure, Ferrell's made a lot of money with his exhibitionism, but those of us who want to be respected for our intelligence resent how he's caused women to objectify the male physique.

3. (tie) Tiger Woods, Tiger Woods, and Tiger Woods

As of Sunday, Woods now has three win streaks of at least five tournaments. He won seven straight over two seasons in 2006 and 2007 and six in a row from late 1999 to early 2000. What he did to push this current streak to five is absurd on multiple levels.

Start with the fact that Woods was seven shots back heading into the weekend with no less than Hall of Fame member Vijay Singh in the lead. Then there was the white-knuckle drama at 18 Sunday with Woods needing a birdie to win and Palmer (one of the few people on the planet with a similar flair for the moment) looking on and the putt dropping only into the center of the cup and Woods -- who never shows more emotion than the situation calls for -- nearly throwing out his rotator cuff when he ripped off his hat and slammed it to the turf. He didn't just win; he dared you not to watch.

And most people did despite having considerable viewing options. On a day when the Rockets made it 22 straight by beating Kobe and the Lakers; when Kansas and Texas played one of the finest college basketball games you'll ever see with a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament hanging in the balance; when CBS' Selection Sunday revealed the field of 65 that'll begin the Big Dance this week. Still, somehow, Tiger made you look.

Talk about March Madness. Thursday, both Woods and those tournament teams begin their quests to win six in a row, Woods in an event he's won six times (World Golf Championships-CA Championship) and at a venue (Doral) where he's won the last three times they've teed it up there. Play hard, boys.

(One final note from Bay Hill: while we won't soon forget Woods' winning putt and subsequent histrionics, just as indelible an image to me was his reaction after the second shot. He had 164 yards into a stiffening breeze and over the lake that protects Bay Hill's 18th. The hole was cut just a few paces past the rocks that rim that hazard. Woods pured a 5-iron to 25 feet, after which -- and here's what sticks with me -- he low-fived Steve Williams. How many times have you seen Woods slam a club in the ground and curse when his approach lands closer, sometimes much closer, than 25 feet but perhaps not in the spot he intended? Happens every round. The second into 18 Sunday went exactly where he wanted it to go at the moment when he needed it most. That's why he slapped Stevie some skin.)

2. Byron Nelson

He won 11 straight in 1945. Save the qualifiers about Hogan and Snead, et al, being absent or out of shape because of military service. Both of those guys played in many of those tournaments. Eleven's 11. No one, not even Tiger, has come within four of that record. It's still the greatest streak in golf and one of the most amazing in any sport.

1. A.C. Green

You think playing nearly 1,200 consecutive games in the NBA is tough? Try preserving your virginity into your late 30s. I'm serious, try it. I'll wait. A.C. (Always Celibate), who won three titles with the Lakers, has been a champion of sexual abstinence outside of marriage, practicing what he preached until he married at age 38.

It's preposterous enough for most people these days to imagine any 38-year-old guy would save himself for his wedding night. There's a reason "The 40-Year-Old Virgin" grossed more than $100 million at the box office. People go to the movies to, as 19th century poet and philosopher -- and noted ladies' man -- Samuel Taylor Coleridge put it, willingly suspend their disbelief. But Green did it (or should I say didn't do it) while spending 17 years on the road in the NBA where every night -- every single night! -- players could help themselves to a bimbo buffet. Even after Magic Johnson scared the pants back on his NBA brethren when he announced in 1991 that he was retiring because of having been diagnosed with HIV, some guys in the league still averaged triple doubles in girlfriends, one-night stands, and paternity suits. Yet Green remained chaste while being chased.

It wasn't easy being Green, which is why he gets this list's top spot.

For now. If Woods keeps winning, he'll have a chance to tie Nelson's 11 straight at the U.S. Open in June. At this rate, it might take a streaker to stop the streak. And if it happens, I'll have only one thing to say:

Don't look, Ethel!

Grant Boone is a husband, father, golf broadcaster, and sports journalist based in Abilene, Texas. An archive of his columns can be found here. He can be contacted at pgagrant@hotmail.com.

The views and opinions expressed here do not reflect those of PGA.com or The PGA of America.