TIGER WOODS
Golfer
By November 2017 the World Ranking of Tiger Woods had slipped to 1,199th. Statistically it was the lowest ebb for a golfer whose record of 683 weeks at number one may never be broken. Many consider Woods to be the greatest golfer of all time but it appeared physically impossible for him to rekindle any semblance of golfing competitiveness. Yet in April this year he became a major champion once again, winning the Masters for the fifth time—the 15th major title of his career.
When Woods won his first major—the 1997 Masters— he became the first black golfer to win at Augusta National, the youngest ever winner of the Masters and he set 20 scoring records on his way to winning by 12 shots. Over a single weekend in Georgia, Woods triggered a boom in global golf that would last a decade.
Woods won his 14th major at the 2008 U.S. Open, playing against doctor’s orders and with what would turn out to be a broken left leg. His leg injuries were just the beginning of Woods’ decline though, as the following year his marriage collapsed as details of his lurid private life emerged. The kiss-and-tell candidates made an orderly line.
Woods recovered a sense of equilibrium in his personal life but his body was in tatters. A series of knee procedures and four back operations took their toll. Woods stubbornly refused to surrender but his dogged pursuit of more silverware looked futile. Impossible. The game had moved on. Not only was Woods no longer one of the longest drivers but the new breed—Rory McIlroy, Dustin Johnson, Brooks Koepka—were hitting the ball much straighter than Woods too.
At the 2017 Masters, Woods had to take a “nerve block” injection so he could just walk to the Champions’ Dinner and sit at the table.
Some world-class form finally began to return for Woods in the Spring of 2018. He challenged down the stretch at both The Open and PGA Championship, defeated McIlroy in the season-closing Tour Championship and brought an outside chance to the 2019 Masters.
It was not the spectacularly dominant Woods at Augusta this year but he patiently constructed his challenge. Then when nervous mistakes took their toll on his finalround rivals—Francesco Molinari, Koepka and Xander Schauffele included—Woods held firm to win by one. “Tiger, Tiger,” chanted an elated crowd around the 18th green.
It was 11 years between Woods’ first and 14th major victories, and another 11 years between his 14th and 15th.
“It’s overwhelming just because of what’s transpired,” said Woods. “Last year I was just very lucky to be playing again… This was one of the hardest I’ve ever had to win.”
At the 2017 Masters Woods took a “nerve block” injection so he could just walk to the Champions’ Dinner