Tiger's timing impeccable as he fires Masters warning shot

TOUR NEWS:WHO HAD the temerity to believe he wouldn't be back, fit again and winning again? Very few, if the truth be known. It was only a matter of when; and Tiger Woods's timing – as usual – has been impeccable, as the world's number one tuned-up for next week's US Masters by firing a warning shot across the bows of all would-be rivals to his perch atop world golf with a dramatic victory in the Bay Hill Invitational on Sunday that puts an end to any lingering doubts about his fitness or sharpness heading in to Augusta.

This was Tiger’s sixth win at Bay Hill, but arguably the most significant in affirming his well-being. Of his 66 victories on the US Tour and the 11 he has achieved around the globe (his British Open wins count on the US Tour), this latest win – by one stroke over Sean O’Hair, finishing with a 16-feet birdie putt on the final hole – sent out all the right signals to players with an eye on the green jacket.

But, mostly, it reaffirmed Woods’s own sense of self-belief.

He has travelled a tough and often lonely road in his rehabilitation, after undergoing reconstructive knee surgery last June just days after his US Open win at Torrey Pines. On January 1st, just three months ago, he had still to get around to hitting every club in his bag.

But a tied-17th finish in the Accenture Matchplay and a tied-ninth finish at the WGC-CA championship in Doral set Woods up perfectly for his latest, winning assault on Bay Hill. Even a five-stroke lead for O’Hair going into the final round wasn’t sufficient to rebuke a predatory Woods.

“I hadn’t been in the mix since the US Open, so it was neat to feel the heat on the back nine again . . . (to get) into the hunt and into contention,” remarked Woods afterwards.

Yet, despite his time away from the sport, Woods didn’t forget how to win when a combination of O’Hair’s fallibility and his own ability created the opportunity.

“It’s like Stevie (Williams) was saying, ‘this feels like we hadn’t left’. You can understand sometimes when some of the older players haven’t been in contention in a while and they come back and then all of a sudden they put themselves in contention and then they win. You just remember how to do it. It hasn’t been that long for me, you just have that feel of what to do and it’s a matter of getting it done.”

A win is a win is a win, but Woods’s focus all along has been on getting right for Augusta.

“As I look back at my three tournaments I’ve played this year, I’ve gotten better at each one, and that was the whole idea to keep progressing to Augusta. I was hoping I could get my game where I could feel hitting shots again because I’d been only on the range and putting at home. Doral was great for that because I got better each and every day with my feel, and (at Bay Hill) I came right out of the gate and I had it . . . it feels good to be back, to feel the heat on the back nine on Sunday like that.”

He added: “At Doral I didn’t get anything out of my rounds. This week, two of the rounds I got probably the max I could get out of those rounds, and that’s what you have to do. I didn’t do that at Doral, consequently I didn’t win the tournament. This was different. I got a lot out of my rounds of golf, good saves, big putts at certain times, and that’s what you have to do in order to score, and I was able to score this week.”

So, in terms of Augusta next week, where the bookies have him as 2 to 1 favourite, what does he hope to bring to the show?

“Well, I’d like to hit the ball like I did at Doral and putt like I did at Bay Hill.”

It’s a potentially deadly combination, and history shows us what Woods can do at Augusta after winning at Bay Hill. In both 2001 and 2002, he warmed up for Augusta with a win in Bay Hill. The signal from his latest win, bringing his career earnings above €63 million, is a simple one: he’s back!

Tiger's Top Tour Wins

1996— Las Vegas Invitational, Walt Disney Classic.

1997— Mercedes Championships, US Masters, Byron Nelson Classic, Western Open.

1998— BellSouth Classic.

1999— Buick Invitational, Memorial Tournament, Western Open, US PGA Championship, WGC-NEC Invitational, Walt Disney Classic, Tour Championship, WGC-AmEx Championship.

2000— Mercedes Championship, Pebble Beach Pro-Am, Bay Hill Invitational, Memorial Tournament, US Open, British Open, US PGA, WGC-NEC Invitational, Bell Canadian Open.

2001— Bay Hill Invitational, Players Championship, US Masters, Memorial Tournament, WGC-NEC Invitational.

2002— Bay Hill Invitational, US Masters, US Open, Buick Open, WGC-AmEx Championship.

2003— Buick Invitational, WGC-Accenture Matchplay, Bay Hill Invitational, Western Open, WGC-AmEx.

2004— WGC-Accenture Matchplay Championship.

2005— Buick Invitational, Ford Championship, US Masters, British Open, WGC-NEC Invitational, WGC-AmEx.

2006— Buick Invitational, Ford Championship, British Open, Buick Open, US PGA, WGC-Bridgestone Invitational, Deutsche Bank Championship, WGC-AmEx.

2007— Buick Invitational, WGC-CA Championship, Wachovia Championship, WGC-Bridgestone Invitational, US PGA, BMW Championship, Tour Championship.

2008— Buick Invitational, WGC-Accenture Matchplay, Bay Hill Invitational, US Open.

2009— Bay Hill Invitational.