Tiger Woods returns to imperious best

Whether in the twirl of his club after the lushest drive, the mutterings to himself after the smallest misjudgement, or the cry of joy after his ball landed on the 18th green to seal victory, he proved definitively at Bay Hill that he was back. So how had he done it? How could the same player who looked shot to pieces not eight months ago at the US PGA, toiling to a missed cut at 10 over par, possibly be leading the betting for Augusta? The immediate answer was straightforward: that he remained the most extravagantly gifted golfer ever to pick up a club, capable not merely of eclipsing the field here in Orlando as embarrassing them, as he demonstrated on Sunday night in beating Graeme McDowell by five shots. But his renaissance owed more to pure hard work, absorbing the drills prescribed by coach Sean Foley to master a different swing pattern. This is why he turned up at every press conference with his technophile spiel about reps, trajes, misses and looks — he had been practising so hard that he could achieve his 72nd PGA Tour victory with his routines perfected to the tiniest detail. Asked by one reporter to identify a favourite shot in his Sunday round, Woods replied: “I can’t say. I thought I hit a boatload of good ones. I was shaping it both ways, changing my traj. I felt so comfortable.” The words ought to have sent a chill through his Augusta rivals, for here was a master again in absolute control of his craft. The haunted figure of the past 2½ years, searching for instant remedies, had been replaced by the familiar perfectionist, castigating himself for his carelessness when a shot from the rough at the ninth finished all of 20 feet from the flag. He really just nailed home his comeback,” McDowell, his playing partner, said. “It was great to have a front-row seat watching maybe the greatest of all time doing what he does best, winning golf tournaments.” Statistics for the week bore out the scale of Woods’s supremacy. He hit 57 of 72 greens, the most of anybody and the highest number he had managed in any event since 2009. He rediscovered his trademark destruction of the par-fives, finishing 12 under par for those holes alone. He was also joint first in scrambling, and had a putt for birdie on 38 consecutive holes over the weekend. The reliability of his driving, save for one wild hook on Saturday that he blamed on a woman yelling out during his downswing, was a revelation. Likewise, the improvements in his putting — the most suspect aspect of his play of late — were reflected in the fact that he ranked fourth in strokes gained on the greens. The one concern was his occasionally suspect iron play, which left him facing rather more 70-foot lag putts than he would have liked. While that was no great headache at Bay Hill, it could yet become an issue at Augusta, where the glassy greens have all the grip of upturned saucers. The premium on accurate approach play is much more marked, and should favour Rory McIlroy, Woods’s main adversary, who can land the ball with greater softness courtesy of his higher ball flight. Woods has a little over a week to smooth out the few creases. But caddie Joe LaCava, to whom he shouted “---- yeah!” upon the moment of triumph on Sunday, said his employer wante the Masters to start straight away. “He’s very jacked,” LaCava said. “He probably wishes the Masters was tomorrow. “You saw the ball-striking. Let’s be honest, he was 13 under and that’s about the worst score he could have shot. Even a guy like that still needs to win to have confidence, so I think it gives him a lot going into Augusta. It proves to him that all the work has paid off and he can still get it done.” The man of the hour was inclined to agree. “I understand how to play Augusta National,” said Woods, who last won there in 2005. “It’s just a matter of executing the game plan. I’m looking forward to my opportunities this year.” The timing of Woods’s breakthrough was immaculate, not simply helping his Masters preparations but also overshadowing today’s publication of former coach Hank Haney’s book, The Big Miss. The memoir contains numerous unflattering revelations about Woods’s personality but one senses that the player could not care less, now he has begun to recapture the prodigious qualities that made him great in the first place. Foley, Woods’s coach, was hugely gratified by the progression in all elements of his student’s game — and promised that more was to come. “We have a long way to go, and he knows that,” the Canadian said. “I’m so pleased for him. He’s putting in the work, and he will continue to do so.” Rory, and the rest, have been warned.