I'm back...to winning, suckers!
Wow, I’m still overwhelmed by the chaos, emotions and mind-blowing events of the day. Would you expect anything less, though? Of course not! After all, Tiger Woods won his first PGA Tour event since the sex scandal that led to his rapid fall from grace, which were triggered by his minor car accident in the wee hours the day after Thanksgiving in 2009.
Woods captured his seventh victory at the Arnold Palmer Invitational and his 72nd on the PGA Tour — he now only needs one more to tie Jack Nicklaus for second in all-time victories.
Can you believe Tiger’s last official Tour victory came at the BMW Championship on September 13th, 2009? I mean, obviously I’ve been aware that he hasn’t won a real tournament since the scandal broke, but it still seems weird (maybe because a colleague brought it to my attention that it’s the first time I’ve seen Tiger win in real life since I started covering the golf beat full-time, and well, time flies).
“It was just pure joy,” said Tiger, referring to his initial emotions. “You know, it was tough today. It was tough conditions out there, man. Wind was whipping out there. It was changing directions and intensities. Arnold (Palmer) did a hell of a job of getting these greens fast, and they were baked out and some of the hardest pins I’ve ever seen here. So I don’t know what the average score was today, but certainly wasn’t anywhere near par. It was a very tough day.
“It was a day of attrition. Just got to hang in there and just keep hitting fairways and greens, and there weren’t going to be a lot of birdie opportunities out there, but when you had them, I just felt like I had to take advantage of it.”
That really does sum it up. Oh, and only two players broke 70 — Brian Harman and J.B. Holmes, who both teed off in the morning, posted 68s.
Tiger was one of the few to shoot under par, posting a 70 to beat Graeme McDowell by a decisive five shots. Though Woods had a five-shot lead going into the 72nd hole, it wasn’t over in his mind until he safely reached the 18th green, guarded by an intimidating water hazard. As soon as his ball landed, he could finally breathe and enjoy the moment.
“F**k yeah,” Tiger said to caddie Joe LaCava.
He also said something like, “All the hard work has paid off.”
/Goosebumps and I’m not going to lie, I got a little sentimental when Tiger embraced a few key people in his life. I could feel the elation. You know when you get second-hand embarrassment because someone does something super awkward that makes you feel awkward for them or to be around them? It’s sort of like that, but joy in this case.
“It wasn’t done until my ball reached the (18th) green,” said Tiger in his post-win 18th green interview. “Granted I had a five-shot lead, but I’ve souped it (in the water guarding the green) a couple of times, and we’ve had some interesting finishes this year on Tour. So just keeping it over to the left somewhere on dry land, somewhere around pin-high and I’ll be good. As soon as I did that, then the trouble was over.”
I love you, man!
I haven’t had time to process the day yet or take a gander at my notes, but here are some quick observations and thoughts: Woods’ iron-play was beyond impressive. He hit 57 of 72 greens, and it was more in the 65-ish range because some of his misses ended up on the fringe.
As Tiger was reading his putt on 18, swing instructor Sean Foley raved about his most famous student’s iron play. He said, “The sexiest long-iron I’ve ever seen Tiger hit was that one on No. 6.” Yep, he called it “sexy,” too. Which club was it? 3-iron.
Tiger came through in the clutch and rolled in a good number of important putts from 5-15 feet to keep his momentum going or to turn it back in his favor after a bogey or wayward shot. His ability to recover was pre-scandal was a crucial component of his game. He certainly wasn’t perfect on Sunday — no birdies on the back nine — but he minimized his mistakes.
On the par-3 14th, Tiger missed the green and then didn’t make the eight-footer to convert for par. He knocked his tee shot on the 15th into a fairway bunker and his second didn’t reach the green, but he pitched it to 12 feet and rolled in the putt for a pivotal up-and-down.
He gave McDowell openings to cut into his lead on more than one occasion. However, after a rough start with a double-bogey from the middle of the fairway on the first hole, G-Mac never managed to recover or take advantage of the opportunities.
Thing is, Tiger bounced back each time and G-Mac didn’t capitalize on those opportunities. Every time it seemed like G-Mac was going to get it going after dropping a bomb (like the 50-footer on No. 4 for eagle), Tiger didn’t flinch and continued to plod along.
Hats off!
Some have asked why Arnie wasn’t on the 18th green during the trophy presentation. Alaistair Johnston, vice chairman of IMG and Palmer’s longtime business manager, said the 82-year-old Palmer was on new medication and having his blood pressure checked throughout the day, About 15 minutes prior to the completion of play, his doctor noticed a spike in his blood pressure to cause some concern. He was taken to Dr. Phillips Hospital for observation and tests. Johnston said he spoke to Palmer’s daughter Amy, and it sounded like his condition was improving, but he will stay in the hospital overnight as a precaution.
One last quick note, Tiger is back to winning, but I’m sick of the storylines and chatter about him being “back” or whether he is “back.” Look, he’s not the same person or player he was pre-scandal. I don’t mean that in a negative way at all. After enduring the life-changing events following the night after Thanksgiving, it’s impossible for Tiger to go back and pretend like nothing happened or he didn’t change. That’s not a bad thing — he’s playing well and I think the win is a sign that he’s grown into his new identity, swing and life.
It’s a new Tiger era, so let’s just relish the moment (and the fact that we no longer have to hear the same questions about whether or not he remembers how to win, can handle the pressure of closing, etc.).
This post was a lot longer than I had planned. Good news is I’m finally coming down from the buzz of Tiger-mania. Seriously, it was a — for lack of a better term — sh*tshow out there! Actually, it was one all day, especially the last four or five holes. I’m sure you saw the scene of the horde in 18 fairway, which was very cool, but a little frightening. Thankfully I was already safely perched near the green.
Oh, by the way, if you don’t follow me on Twitter — shame on you and you should be! — check out my feed for tidbits and photos I posted throughout the afternoon.
Stay tuned for more details and thoughts on The Big Win. For now, congrats, Tiger.
(AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack, John Raoux)
Two out of the field of 74 guys shot a better score on Sunday than Tiger Woods did, and those 2 guys were under no pressure as they were not in contention. Given the playing conditions AND the fact that he was playing with the lead, yes, Tiger Woods PLAYED GREAT on Sunday.
It’s one thing to have an opinion, but quite another to just say silly things like MW is.
Silly things? You Tiger lovers sure do get your panties in a wad if someone isn’t gushing praise. I haven’t said anything negative about him or his win. If you think he played great, that he is “back”, that he is in prime form, that he is going to break all the records, then go on believing that. His dominance was something that happened over time, and his return to that dominance will not happen with just one win.
I think Tiger will win at Olympic this year. The way he is driving and hitting the ball overall, I have more confidence in his chances there then the Masters where he is always amongst the favorites.
MW, sweetheart, you said he didn’t play all that great. Now, I responded to that statement alone.
Is anyone curious how Tiger could WD at Bay Hill on the 12th hole due to a “puffy achilles tendon”, then 3 days later miraculously play 8 CONSECUTIVE DAYS OF GOLF? 18 HOLES OF GOLF A DAY. EIGHT DAYS IN A ROW. Capped off by his first PGA Tour win in 3 years?
His achilles sure made a quick recovery. If it was honestly bad enough to withdraw from a tournament, then I would love to get his Doctor’s name. It is truly a miracle an injury so terrible Tiger would withdraw from a tourney could reverse itself to allow him to play 8 days in a row.
Unless maybe ummm he ummm wasn’t really hurt and spared himself his Fedex ranking, world ranking, lousy tournament finish, and anything else you can think of a completely dishonest “man” would to so spare himself. Part of me gives him credit. Most of me thinks he is still the lying cheating alcohol and drug influenced driver that smashed his SUV into a tree 3 years ago. I mean, you people may forgive and forget, but open your freaking eyes to this miscreant.
“He is no Jack Nicklaus”. Nor will ever be.
What’s so great about Nicklaus? All he did is win a few golf tournments like thousands of others. Anyhow its OK for Nicklaus to be your role model.
I want to apologize for my last post. I made a very serious error.
I meant to say: “Most of me thinks he is still the lying cheating adulterer who committed some of his adultery while his wife was still pregnant with his child. And also the alcohol and drug influenced driver that smashed his SUV into a tree 3 years ago.” <–That laws were overlooked to not give him a breathalyzer or a drug test after his accident.
Are you a doctor? Do you know how long an inflamed achilles tendon takes to heal. It is basic inflammation or slight irritation to the tissue. Rest an ice and it can easily heal two or three days. Given Tigers streak of injuries it makes perfect sense not to risk serious injury or put Augusta at risk.
Also no one in the media has picked up on this but Tiger has been wearing two pairs of the new Nike Free golf shoes. One in white and one in black. The interesting thing is there is something up with the black pair. He has only worn them a few rounds but when he is playing his best he was wearing the white ones. He wore the black ones at Bay Hill on the range and to start the round but switched to the white ones mid way through the round before he WD. He hasn’t worn the black ones since. Tiger has always worn black shoes with the Sunday red except at API. Could be nothing but I think there is something about the black shoes that seem to irritate his feet and possibly cause the tendon flare up.
Who cares about his personal life. You put Tiger in prime against Jack in his prime and Tiger would take him out to the woodshed.
Another indication of how important this win was to Tiger is that he reportedly gave Joe LaCava a $5 tip on top of his regular pay (although later, he probably regretted doing so)!
tiger woods is not the same player he was before all the problems came. He fell off alot and just because he won ths competition does not necessarily mean that he is back to being the old tiger woods fans are use to seeing.