Tiger’s Triumph

After a 923 day dry-spell, the former phenom Tiger Woods was seen red-shirt clad and fist pumping away in the Sunday sunshine of the Arnold Palmer Invitational golf tournament. Now there are only two words on everyone’s lips: he’s back.

After all the injury scares and the turbulent sex scandal, Tiger Woods managed to close with a 2-under 70 for a five-shot win over Graeme McDowell. The upcoming tell-all by his former swing coach, Hank Haney, was meant to have everyone asking if Tiger’s days on the links were numbered. With his showing on Sunday, now the player doesn’t even have to respond. It’s clear that this Tiger is still on the prowl.

Tiger’s performance on Sunday harkened back to the glory days for the former Number 1 champ. The final hole on Sunday was little more than a formality. Tiger tapped his putter on the ground in eager anticipation of his turn, knowing that the past 30 winless months were all in the past.

“It does feel good. It feels really good,” Tiger said before signing his card. “It’s been a lot of hard work.”

Recently, ESPN’s Tom Rinaldi – a nice guy if there ever was one – asked Tiger what the difference was between himself and his opponents when he was at the top of his game.

Tiger’s answer: “The score.”

With Sunday’s performance, Tiger has once again answered the naysayers and critics who whisper behind his back. While he may not have put an end to the doubters for good, when he stepped off the field with the trophy in hand, he certainly took a step in the right direction.

Afterward, Tiger just couldn’t get that grin off of his face. “Pure joy,” he called it. After the last few years, I think we all can agree that Tiger needs a little bit of joy.

“To me, it was the old Tiger back, the guy I remember,” Ernie Els said then. “He never missed a shot or made a bad swing.”

The question a few weeks ago was would Woods ever play again. Now, it’s whether he can reclaim his former glory and reclaim his crown as the player who rules the world of golf.

So what do you think, Rockheads? Is Tiger finally making good on his comeback, or is this merely the last spark before the former star is extinguished? You know the drill; leave your thoughts in the comment section!