NO DOUBT ABOUT IT, TIGER WOODS IS BACK

When the 44 foot putt disappeared into the cup on the 17th hole to pull Tiger Woods within 1 shot of Paul Casey at the Valspar Championship, it didn’t really matter what would happen on the final hole. Despite playing in only his 4th tournament after missing almost a year from the PGA Tour, Woods had shown that he could still generate the excitement, shot making and athleticism that he brought to the Tour as a 20 year-old in 1996. His birdie putt on the 18th came up a foot short to relegate him to a 2nd place tie with Patrick Reed, but Woods clearly established that this latest comeback will look more like the 2012 - 2013 version than the prior one from 2016 - 2017. Despite lacking sharpness with his irons in his final round, he still had that putt on the last hole to force a playoff with Paul Casey.

The Innisbrook Resort, the site of the Valspar, had to add over 6,000 parking spaces to accommodate the record crowds spawned by the presence of Tiger Woods. Galleries were 10 to 12 people deep for every hole Woods played, creating an almost major tournament feel to the event. His playing partners really didn’t have much of a chance of shooting a good round. Two of the world’s best, Jordan Spieth and Henrik Stenson, were laid low by the challenge of being in the same group as the rock star-like Woods.  Neither one of them came close to making the cut, while Tiger was contending for the lead over the first two days. Even Brandt Snedeker, paired with the former world number 1 over the weekend, finally succumbed to the circus atmosphere and slid to a 7 over par 78 on Sunday.

At age 42, what is it about Tiger Woods that makes him so appealing a player? His last tournament win was the Bridgestone Invitational in the summer of 2013 and he hadn’t contended in a PGA Tour event since the 2015 Wyndham Championship. Many analysts had surmised that his chance to come back at the age of 42 and play well after multiple knee and back surgeries was unlikely. Lest we forget, from 1999 to 2008, Woods rewrote the record books, with the exception of Sam Snead’s 82 tournament wins and Jack Nicklaus’ 18 majors. After being written off the first time following personal issues and injuries from 2009 - 2012, he simply won 5 times in 2013 on his way to his 11th PGA Tour Player of the Year award, 10th money title and 9th Vardon Trophy for the lowest scoring average. To get the answer to the question posed at the beginning of this paragraph, you need look no further than that 44 foot putt on the 17th hole. Because when he’s healthy, Tiger Woods simply does things on the golf course that no one else is capable of doing.  

What’s especially surprising about Woods’ 2nd place finish was that he was playing a golf course he hadn’t seen in over 21 years when he played the JC Penney Classic, a mixed team event where he was paired with LPGA professional Kelly Kehne. The Copperhead Course at Innisbrook is challenging, as evidenced by the winning score of only 10 under par and the cut line of 3 over. To finish as well as he did with very little prior course knowledge was quite an accomplishment and will clearly increase expectations for him as he tees it up in his next two tournaments: The Arnold Palmer Invitational where he has won 8 times at Bay Hill and The Masters Tournament at which he’s captured 4 green jackets at Augusta National. In a blog following the 2016 Hero Challenge, in which Tiger finished 15th out of 18 players in the field, I wrote the following: “Can Tiger win again on tour? Absolutely. Will he win another major? From what I saw this week, and if he stays healthy, I don't see any reason why he can't contend, and if he can contend, he can win.” It was true in December of 2016, and it’s true today.

Hear my recent interview with legendary sports agent Leigh Steinberg, where we discussed his agency, concussions, franchise relocation and philanthropy at http://thechtonsports.com/cold-hard-truth-sports-radio-show-1242017/

Also listen to our conversation with author and sports journalist Mike Carey, as we discussed his latest book "Bad News" about Marvin Barnes and reminisced about Mike's coverage of the Boston Celtics during their glory years with Larry Bird, Kevin McHale, Danny Ainge and Robert Parish. http://www.blogtalkradio.com/golongmedia/2017/02/08/the-cold-hard-truth-on-sports-radio-show

Don't forget to check out my new book, "Offsetting Penalties - A PK Frazier Novel" at  Amazon.com. Also check out www.thechtonsports.com for our podcasts and live broadcast on Tuesday's at 8:30 pm EST. I can also be reached via email at kevin@pkfrazier.com.