Tiger Woods' return a success, even if victory's a long way off

NEW PROVIDENCE ISLAND, Bahamas — Let’s call this what it is, before the moment cools: the single greatest performance in the history of Tiger Woods’ career.

Nah, not really. Woods’ 15th-place finish (in a 17-player field) in the Hero World Challenge was a milestone, perhaps even a triumph, since Woods was about 50-50 odds to even finish the tournament at all. But we’re in an era of expectations diminished to the point of invisibility for Woods; if he’s able to swing a club without his back igniting, that counts as a success.

“It feels good to be back out here playing again, trying to beat the best players in the world,” Woods said shortly after the round. “I missed it. I love it.”

Woods played four straight rounds of respectable, often impressive golf, showing flashes of the spectacular play that was once routine. But he also showed the effects of 16 months away from the course, fading hard at the end of every round, concluding with a double bogey on his 72nd hole.

That’s a result of conditioning, getting in swings under actual tournament conditions. Walking on a treadmill or wandering a home course will help, but it’s no substitute for the rigor of an actual tournament, the pressure that builds on every shot, the gallery (such as it was in the Bahamas) pacing along every step of the way. Woods has spent the last year-plus in virtual seclusion, and under the bright sunlight at Albany Golf Club, he blinked plenty.

Sunday was easily his worst round of the week, a round in which he never appeared comfortable and couldn’t sustain any good fortune. He’d played the front nine in 10-under during the first three days of the tournament, but could only manage an even par on Sunday … and that only after draining three straight birdies coming into the turn.

And then the wheels jumped the proverbial track. Woods went bogey-double bogey-bogey to start the back nine, gritting his teeth and seething. This was the Woods we’ve known the last few years, sullen, virtually silent, adrift. But rather than completely checking out and storming into the clubhouse as fast as possible, Woods ground out his final holes, carding birdies on 14 and 15 before a final, get-me-the-hell-out-of-here double-bogey on 18. He finished with a 4-over 76, moving him back to 4-under for the tournament.

Still, there are plenty of positives for Woods to build on. For starters, he played five straight days of tournament-level golf … well, four days and a pro-am. That entails several miles of walking, several hours of intense concentration, and several more hours of stretching and therapy before and after the round. Woods was already coming off sickness he’d picked up from his kids over Thanksgiving, and he hadn’t played a full tournament in more than 15 months.

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The perpetual Nike pitchman was also playing his first tournament with a smattering of equipment, including a Bridgestone ball, TaylorMade driver, Nike irons, and his old Scotty Cameron putter. “I’m still testing, I’m still trying to figure things out,” Woods said. “I just settled on a couple things this week. For instance, the 3-wood I found, I found it in the back of a shed here early in the week. It’s still new to me here.”

Woods, all too often inscrutable behind a mask of everything’s-fine, expressed uncharacteristic vulnerability on Sunday. “This stretch where I’ve been off for almost a year and a half has been rough,” he said. “I’ve had some very, very difficult times, and have some great friends that have helped me over the times to get me to this point. I’m just so thankful to be back here playing again.”

“It looks like he’s going to be back,” Jordan Spieth said Sunday afternoon, jostling with Woods for space in the crowded area around the Albany scorer’s tent. “That’s really exciting for us and for golf … He can truly help get the numbers back up in golf.”

The Hero World Challenge doesn’t really constitute a full tournament-level challenge; this was an 18-man field (17 after Justin Rose withdrew) at a private club on the corner of a Caribbean island, with a miniscule gallery in attendance and a pronounced lack of urgency throughout. (Brandt Snedeker was one of the many players who didn’t exactly treat the event with Open Championship-level formality; on Saturday, he rocketed almost directly from the 18th green to a waiting fishing boat to chase yellowtail.)

Even so, this was a huge test for Woods, if no one else. And by any realistic measure, he passed. Winning on tour is still a long way away, winning majors even farther. But for now, Woods is back in the game.

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Jay Busbee is a writer for Yahoo Sports and the author of EARNHARDT NATION, on sale now at Amazon or wherever books are sold. Contact him at jay.busbee@yahoo.com or find him on Twitter or on Facebook.

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