Daily Archives: March 26, 2012

Mar 26 2012

Tiger gets a “W”

Tiger Woods finally brought the buzz back to the very thing that made him famous – winning….Two weeks after another injury scare, and two days before his former coach’s book goes on sale, Woods looked dominant as ever in that red shirt on Sunday to win the Arnold Palmer Invitational.

It was his first PGA Tour victory since a sex scandal at the end of 2009 led to one of the greatest downfalls in sports. And with the Masters only two weeks away, Woods looks more capable of ever than resuming his pursuit of Jack Nicklaus in the majors.

Woods closed with a 2-under 70 for a five-shot win over Graeme McDowell.

The question two weeks ago was when he could play again. Now, it’s whether he can get back to player who once ruled golf.

Even though he won the unofficial Chevron World Challenge last December, this was meaningful for Woods – a full tour event against a strong field, and a performance so clean that he was never seriously challenged on the back nine.

The final hole was a mere formality, and Woods tapped his putter on the ground waiting for his turn, knowing that 30 months without a win on the PGA Tour was about to win. He walked off the green with his arm extended, waving his cap to a raucous gallery.

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

Woods finished at 13-under 275 for his 72nd PGA Tour win, one short of Nicklaus for second place on the career list. But that’s not the record Woods wants. He has 14 majors, four shot of the Nicklaus standard, and he tries to end a four-year drought at the Masters, which starts April 5.

”I am excited, no doubt,” Woods said. ”I’m looking forward to the momentum I’ve built here.”