Tiger Shows He’s Back After Winning Arnold Palmer Tournament

Before his win at the Arnold Palmer Invitational yesterday, Tiger Woods had not won a PGA tournament since September 2009, when he won the title in the BMW Championship. The fact that his win took place at the Bay Hill Golf Course was also very symbolic. Although Tiger’s won on that course three times in the past, it’s also just miles from the scene in which he got into a minor car accident at his home, a highly publicized event that came at the height of his cheating scandal. On Sunday though, even Tiger looked confident for much of the course, it wasn’t an easy win.

Things didn’t look good for Tiger as early as the second hole, when he bogeyed a shot that he once made look so easy. Although those on the green with him definitely took notice of the miss, they moved onto the third hole while Tiger hung back. Walking up to the hole and lining up the shot once again, Tiger stared at it momentarily, as if trying to understand what had gone wrong. He then moved on with the rest of his crew onto the third hole.

It was there that he put himself back in the game, mentally if nothing else, and shot an extremely difficult iron across a body of water, and with a strong wind working against him. When the ball landed, it was five feet in front of the hole and Tiger easily made the putt to birdie the hole. Then, also birdying holes 4, 6, and 8, perhaps the most challenging part for Tiger came at the 15th hole, when he was facing Graeme McDowell, who shot a birdie. Tiger needed to make a shot of 20 feet just to make par, and he could have easily lost his lead. In the past two and a half years, that’s exactly what he would have done. But he’s come a long way.

McDowell missed his shot, and Tiger made his, pumping his fist in the air as he did. He carried that enthusiasm with his all the way to the 18th hole, where after making his last putt he raised his cap and waved to the spectators lining the green — just like back in the day.

Although Woods would most likely have been invited to the Masters even without this win, his victory on Sunday did secure him a spot in Augusta.

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