Tiger is a hero once again
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AS EARLY Christmas presents for golfers go, what Tiger Woods gave us in the Bahamas was right up there with the gift you have always wanted.
How could the spirit not soar watching him belt the ball past the best player in the world this year and start the long and arduous process of turning doubters into believers?
There was no chance of that happening at the Hero World Challenge. That can only happen in full field events next year and he demonstrates he is finally over the back problems that have robbed him of the last three years of his career.
What we were hoping for from this 18-man exhibition event was some evidence there is still a semblance of the magic he once possessed, with his 42nd birthday coming up later this month and after all he has been through.
We got that all right and, thrillingly, an awful lot more. Indeed, over 72 holes, Woods demonstrated beyond reasonable doubt that if he can stay healthy — a huge if, of course — he can be a winner once more.
From the moment he outdrove Justin Thomas with his opening tee shot on Thursday, Tiger showed he is not interested in coming back to make up the numbers. What would be the point in that?
Now he needs his doctors to be proven right with their assessment the fusion surgery he had last April will hold up and allow him to put in the hours he needs to be a factor at the top of the game again.
Watching some of the shots Tiger struck yesterday added up to a huge tribute to the miracles of modern medicine and the glory of indomitable will. Would he be feeling the lumbar region playing his fourth round in a row? Well, at the par-five third, he clipped a two iron off the turf and found the green 265 yards away.
Better still was the driveable par-four seventh, where Tiger leaned into his tee shot and found the putting surface 335 yards into the distance. When the 25ft putt crept into the hole on its last breath for an eagle two, the watching Rafa Nadal led the applause.
‘He’s unbelievable, isn’t he?’ said the tennis world No 1, who knows all about trying to beat debilitating injuries.
Here is how unbelievable Tiger is. Not only did he drive the ball accurately, he regularly reached a swing speed of 180 mph.
To put that into context, players of the calibre of Sergio Garcia, Justin Rose and Paul Casey have not managed that speed all year. That is how good his back is right now. That is why this comeback feels different to others in the past.
It was amazing to watch the reaction on social media as he gave a glimpse of his genius. On Friday his odds of winning the Masters next April actually fell lower than those of the defending champion Garcia — 25-1 to 28-1.
Perhaps it was just as well he struggled horribly in the winds that blew in Saturday’s third round, for clearly expectations need to be tempered at this stage. As Woods acknowledged: ‘I’ve still got an awful lot of work to do after so long away from the game.’
That much was clear with a number of duffed chips and some general short-game rustiness. At his final hole of the event, he three-putted from no more than 15ft. But it all paled beside the good stuff and the fact his love of the fight is plainly undiminished.
Interviewed on American television, he looked five years younger, and the epitome of athleticism again. ‘Overall, I’m very pleased,’ he said, following a 68 for a tie for ninth. ‘I showed some good signs. I hit some good shots out there. I’ve had some tough times with my back but I’m proud to come out the other side. You know, a bright future.’
Is it too much to ask for, or will the hope kill us again?
Woods did not reveal when that future will begin, but the smart money will be somewhere in California next month.
Meanwhile, one of the bright, young things who have kept us royally entertained during Tiger’s absence underlined why many think he will break through and win his first major next year.
Trailing fellow American Charley Hoffman by five shots at the start of play, Rickie Fowler began with seven straight birdies, played the first nine in 28 shots, and ended up with an amazing 61 to win by four shots on under 18.
Rose finished joint fifth after a 70 while Tommy Fleetwood played his final round as a single man — he will get married on the beach in the Bahamas tomorrow — in 67 shots to finish tied third.