LOOK WHO’S STALKING
TIGER TWO BACK, TIED FOR 2ND AT VALSPAR
THE progress has been steady, but hardly slow. It has, in fact, come at a rate no one — not even Tiger Woods — could have expected to be this fast.
Twelve PGA Tour tournament rounds into a comeback from a fourth back surgery, which took place 11 months ago, Woods is in contention to win. Already. Woods’ comeback reached its dramatic pinnacle to date Friday as he surged to the lead at the Valspar Championship at Innisbrook in Palm Harbor, Fla.
Woods, who began his round on the 10th hole in a morning-wave tee time, finished his second round on the Copperhead Course with a 3-under 68. Coupled with his 1-under 70 in the opening round, that had him tied for the lead at 4-under when he finished.
By day’s end, Woods was two shots behind surprising PGA Tour rookie leader Corey Conners, who’s 6-under. Woods is tied with Paul Casey, Brandt Snedeker, Ryan Palmer and Kelly Kraft.
“I’ve come a long way in a [short] span of time,” Woods said. “I’m up there. [Friday] was a good day, [but we’ve] got a long way to go, 36 holes.”
Woods, playing in this tournament for the first time, was paired with Jordan Spieth and Henrik Stenson, the past two British Open winners and both former winners of the Valspar. Both Spieth, who finished 5-over, and Stenson, who finished 6-over, missed the cut.
Woods finished with four birdies and one bogey, which took place on his final hole of the day at No. 9. He hit 8-of-13 fairways, 11-of-18 greens in regulation and had 26 putts.
A birdie on the par-5 fifth hole, Woods’ 14th hole of the round, got him to 5-under for the tournament gave him sole possession of the lead alone for the first time.
Woods finished tied for 23rd at the Farmers Insurance Open, his first PGA Tour event of the year. He missed the cut at the Genesis Open at Riviera, where historically he never has played well, and 12th at the Honda Classic two weeks ago.
The performance at Torrey Pines and his play in the two events since proved to Woods and everyone else he appears to be on the other side of the physical limitations that halted his brilliant career.
The next part of the progression, as Woods stated before the Honda Classic, is “winning time.’’
“I keep getting a little bit better here and there, making these little subtle tweaks, and I’ve done that from tournament to tournament,” Woods said. “I thought I had a shot at Honda with a few holes to go, and instead of making birdies coming in, I didn’t. [I] made some mistakes. But to play myself into contention this early into [Valspar], it was nice, and on top of that to build on what I did a week ago. I feel comfortable out there.” As Woods, who began the day three shots off the lead, played his round and surged to the lead, the crowds following him swelled to a huge gallery, making it look like a major championship.
It’s been five years since Woods collected the last of his 79 career victories and 10 years since he won the last of his 14 career major championships.
Woods’ career, since his marital infidelity scandal broke in 2009, has been more defined by his personal struggles, which have included a litany of injuries, than what he’s done on the golf course.
That narrative now is changing. Woods’ comeback is 12 PGA Tour tournament rounds in, and already he has put himself in position to win. The weekend figures to be fascinating.
“I’m looking forward to it,” Woods said.
So, too, are a number of his competitors.
“It’ll be great to see him in the last [groups] on a weekend,” Snedeker said.
“That would be really, really cool,” Casey said. “It’s great to see him back. I’m excited. Feels like the old days.”
The electricity Woods is bringing to the tournaments he plays is palpable.
“I actually want him to play brilliant golf, want him to win again because I want these kids to see what we dealt with for a long, long time,” Casey said. “[For] most of these guys, Tiger is their idol. Now you have Jordan, [Justin Thomas], Rickie [Fowler] … these guys didn’t get to see him the way I got to see him, and I hope they get to see him the way I got to see him.
“I want to kind of experience it [again], which is why I really hope he wins, if not this week, soon. It would be brilliant. I want to win this week. If I don’t win this week, I want Tiger to win this week.”