Golf: Former World No. 1 Tiger Woods Seals First Win In Five Years
Tiger Woods recorded his first victory in more than five
years on Sunday, finishing a two-shot win at the Tour Championship to crown a fairy-tale
comeback after a two-year absence.
Woods, ended with an 11-under-par aggregate 269, raised his
arms in delight after the victory, with numerous thousand fans resounding the
green and roaring their appreciation.
Woods admitted he had nearly been overcome with emotion as
he walked up the 18th fairway.
“I was having a hard time not crying coming up the last
hole,” Woods said, whose most recent win before Sunday had come 1,876 days ago
at the 2013 WGC-Bridgestone Invitational.
“I kept saying ‘Hey, I could still play this out of bounds.’
But once I got the ball on the green I gave (caddie) Joey (LaCava) a high five
because I knew it was done.”
It was an emotional finale to a year which saw Woods return
to the highest level after he had once feared he may never play golf again.
“It was just a grind out there,” Woods said of his final
round. “I loved every bit of it. The fight, the grind, the tough conditions.
“To win it’s certainly up there with obviously all the major
championships I’ve won, Players, World Golf Championships but then this is
under different circumstances.
“I just didn’t know whether this would ever happen again. If
I could somehow piece together a golf swing this year, I felt like I could do
it … somehow I’ve been able to do that, and here we are.”
Woods later revealed he had also fought back tears on the
final green as he prepared for the par putt to complete the win.
“I realized all of sudden I was going to win the
tournament,” he said.
‘It’s been tough’
“My eyes started tearing up a little bit. I just can’t
believe I pulled this off after I’ve gone through.
“It’s been tough. I’ve had a not-so-easy last couple of
years. I’ve worked my way back. I couldn’t have done it without the help of all
the people around me.
“Some of the other players knew what I was struggling with.
It was really special to see them at the green on 18. It’s just hard to believe
I won the Tour Championship.”
The victory erased any last lingering doubts about Woods’
ability to compete at the highest level, something he had served notice of with
top 10 finishes at the British Open and US PGA Championships.
Woods returned to play in January after missing almost the
entire preceding two years with a devastating back injury, held a three-shot
advantage heading into the final round.
A birdie on his opening hole extended Woods’ lead to four
shots to give the former world number one a dream start.
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